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READER FOR COMING AMERICANS 



READER 



FOR 



COMING AMERICANS 



READINGS AND LANGUAGE LESSONS 

IN HISTORY, INDUSTRIES 

AND GOVERNMENT 



By PETER ROBERTS, Ph. D. 



New York 

Young Men's Christian Association Press 

1910 



•** K V 



Copyright, 1910, by the 

International Committee of Young Men's 

Christian Associations 



CLA25I 



TABLE OF CONTENTS 



Part One — Historical 

I. The Discoverer of America 13 

II. American Aborigines 16 

III. The Rivalry of Nations 20 

IV. The Deliverer of America 24 

V. An Attack on Quebec 28 

VI. Palmetto Logs and Victory 31 

VII. The Patriot Spy 35 

VIII. Uncivilized Backwoodsmen 38 

IX. A Midnight Surprise 42 

X. The Obelisk with the Empty Space 46 

XL Area of the United States 49 

XII. Geographical Divisions 52 

XIII. Wars of America 56 

XIV. Old Hickory at New Orleans 60 

XV. The Preserver of the Union 64 

XVI. General Grant 68 

XVII. Devotion to the Union 72 

XVIII. Dying for the Flag 75 

XIX. Population 78 

XX. America and the World 81 

Part Two — Industrial 

I. General Resources 89 

II. Coal 91 

III. Petroleum 93 

IV. Salt 95 

V. Lead 97 

VI. Lumber 99 

VII. Rice 101 

VIII. Printing 103 



CONTENTS 



IX. Paper 105 

X. Iron 108 

XI. Steel 110 

XII. Steamboats 112 

XIII. Locomotives 114 

XIV. Electricity 1 16 

XV. The Telegraph 119 

XVI. Leather 121 

XVII. Chemicals 124 

XVIII. Silk Industry 126 

XIX. Cotton Industry , 128 

XX. Starch 131 

Part Three — Government 

I. Forms of Government 139 

II. The Beginnings of American Democracy. 143 

III. The New England Township 145 

IV. The County 148 

V. Public Education 151 

VI. The Citizen and the Government 153 

VII. Who Can and Who Cannot Vote 155 

VIII. Government and Property Interests 159 

IX. Why Taxes Are Imposed 160 

X. Different Kinds of Taxes 162 

XI. The City 164 

XII. Why Cities Have Laws 166 

XIII. Maintaining Order 168 

XIV. State Government 170 

XV. State and Local Governments 173 

XVI. The Administration of Justice 176 

XVII. Congress 182 

XVIII. The President and His Cabinet 185 

XIX. The States and the Nation 189 

XX. Naturalization 194 



PREFACE 

The millions of foreign-born in America, if they 
are to love this country, must know that the country 
is worth loving. The definition of the Republic, "A 
government of the people, by the people and for the 
people," conveys no meaning to the alien unless he 
is shown how the people rule. To sing, "The land 
of the free and the home of the brave," is not enough ; 
it must be accompanied by a rehearsal of some of the 
deeds of the free and the brave. The foreign-born 
can only learn by systematic teaching that America 
has a form of government well calculated to reflect 
the needs of the people; that our courts of justice 
guarantee to each man the fruits of his labor; that 
civil and religious liberty is enjoyed by all who dwell 
under the shadow of the stars and stripes. 

These facts are a "gospel of glad tidings" to 
millions of immigrants. They come hoping for great 
things ; it remains with us whether or not they shall 
realize their hope. A government dependent upon 
militarism and bureaucracy can afford to ignore the 
ignorance and illiteracy of its subjects; a democracy 
cannot. Our brother immigrant needs education, 
and when he understands that justice and truth, free- 
dom and liberty, rights and duties, are necessary in 
a democracy, he will help to preserve them. 

The Reader is designed for the use of those who 
either have finished the course in "Preparatory Eng- 
lish,"* or who have a sufficient knowledge of the Eng- 

*"English for Coming Americans," a course in preparatory English for the 
foreign-speaking, comprising thirty lessons, by Peter Roberts, Ph. D. Y. M. 
C. A. Press, New York. 



8 PREFACE 

lish language so as to profit by attending classes in 
which questions in history, government and industry 
are discussed. Our aim has been to furnish material 
for class work which a wise teacher may use accord- 
ing to his discretion. The objective is to kindle the 
love of the alien for a form of government evolved on 
this continent by a free people. 



The Teachers 

Language is conversation, and the purpose of this 
Reader is to furnish material to teachers who aid the 
foreign-speaking to talk, read and write the English 
language accurately and fluently. 

The following is my way of teaching — taking for 
instance Lesson L, The Discoverer of America: — 

1. I tell the story in simple language to the class, 
pointing on the world's map the place from which 
Columbus started and the island where he landed. 

2. We go over the lesson in the Reader. I ask 
each student by name to read a sentence. Each 
member in the class pays particular attention to 
pronunciation and I emphasize the points about 
which questions will soon be asked. Jan stumbles over 
a word. I ask the class if he pronounces it correctly : 
No : what is the right pronunciation ? All say it : all 
read the sentence : that's it. Now proceed. We read 
the last paragraph in unison. 

3. I go to the map again and point out Portugal 
and ask Michael to read the note about it. I point 



PREFACE 9 

out the Bahamas and ask Petro to read the note 
about it. We find New Providence and Nassau. 

4. I ask questions ; not only those given in the 
lesson but others also : anything that pertains to the 
subject about which the students are willing to talk. 
Oscar gives monosyllabic answers. I ask him to give 
a fuller answer. I encourage the backward and see 
that the forward ones do not give all the answers. 

5. We find the words given under "synonyms" in 
the lesson ; each time I ask a pupil to use the synonym 
and read the sentence. We then take up the words 
of like sound. I write on the blackboard : "The tool 

is . ln the box" and tell the students to write it and 

inn 

choose the correct word. I do the same with "to and 
too," "knew and new," "the and thee," "would and 
wood." 

6. I write on the blackboard while the students 
are writing the sentences : 

Columbus discovered America 

Great finally an island in 

I tell the class what parts of speech the words on the 
upper line are. Then I take up the supplemental 
words and do the same. 

I explain : noun is the name of a thing (illustrate). 

verb denotes action (illustrate). 

adjective qualifies noun (illustrate). 

preposition shows relation (illustrate). 

7. Before dismissing the class I ask each student 
to write, at home, all he knows about Columbus and 
bring it with him next time. 



10 PREFACE 

The grammar lessons are given for the convenience 
of the teacher; he must exercise discretion as to how 
much to give the pupils, according to their capacity. 
He should avoid all abstraction, give concrete in- 
stances of all he teaches, and as far as possible ob- 
jectify every lesson. 

The teacher need not follow the lessons consecu- 
tively. The instruction in grammar can be adapted 
to any lesson in Part One or Part Two. It is not 
advisable to introduce instruction in grammar in con- 
nection with the lessons in Part Three, because of the 
variety of subjects to be discussed in them. 

Each lesson affords opportunity for the intro- 
duction of supplemental words and phrases. The 
teacher should ever keep this in mind and give prac- 
tice to the students in the choice of adjectives, ad- 
verbs or qualifying phrases to amplify simple sen- 
tences. 



PART ONE 
HISTORICAL 



READINGS IN HISTORY 

I. THE DISCOVERER OF AMERICA 
(1445-1506) 

Christopher Columbus discovered America in 1492. 
He was a native of Genoa, Italy, and began a sea- 
faring life when he was fourteen years old. He was 
a poor boy with limited education, believing at first, 
as all others did at that time, that the earth was flat. 
However through years of experience he became pro- 
ficient as a sailor. He married a navigator's daugh- 
ter and came into possession of many valuable maps 
and charts. After much study he concluded that 
the earth was round and that by going west he would 
come to India. He was very ambitious to put his 
belief to a practical test. 

Columbus became a resident of Lisbon, the capital 
of Portugal, then a center of nautical enterprise, and 
he tried to interest the people of that country in his 
plans. But all thought him foolish and his scheme 
fantastic. After eighteen years of waiting, insult 
and poverty, Isabella, Queen of Spain, became inter- 
ested in his cause and she and the King placed at his 
disposal three ships manned by sailors ready to sail 
upon unknown seas. Columbus sailed westward for 
ten weeks before he saw land. During that time the 
sailors more than once threatened mutiny and Col- 
umbus resorted to various devices to calm their fears. 
They finally landed on one of the group of islands 
we now call the Bahamas. Columbus supposed these 
were islands off the coast of Asia and that the inhabi- 



14 READER FOR COMING AMERICANS 

tants were Indians. The islands were called the 
West Indies because they were reached by sailing 
west — India proper was called the East Indies be- 
cause it was reached by the eastern route. 

Columbus returned to Europe to tell of his dis- 
covery and soon other navigators came to the New 
World. Columbus lived to make three other voy- 
ages to the new land and died (1506), believing that 
he had discovered only a new way to Asia. It was 
some years later before men knew that Columbus had 
discovered a new world. The continent was called 
America after Americus Vespucius, a navigator, who 
was supposed to be the first to discover the main land 
and of whose voyage an account was printed. 

Explanations 

Portugal : A kingdom of Europe situated on the western 
part of the Iberian Peninsula, with Lisbon as its capital. 

Bahamas: A group of islands northeast of Cuba and 
east of Florida. The capital city is Nassau on the 
Island of New Providence. 

Questions 

1. What can you tell of the early life of Columbus? 

2. Whom did Columbus marry and what came into 
his possession? 

3. What was the common belief regarding the shape 
of the earth ? 

4. What did Columbus conclude from his study? 

5. What was he ambitious to do? 

6. Whom did he first try to interest in his plans ? 

7. How long was he kept waiting? 

8. Who finally came to his aid? 

9- Describe incidents of his voyage. 
10. Where did he land? 



LESSONS IN HISTORY 15 

11. Did he return to Europe? 

12. How many more voyages did he make? 

13. After whom was the continent named and why? 

Synonyms 

Concluded — inferred Nautical — naval (of the 
Disposal — command sea) 

Enterprise — undertaking Occasions — incidents 

Fantastic — unpractical Resorted — used (had re- 
Mutiny — revolt course to) 

Navigator — one who sails Seafaring — sailor 

Words Like in Sound 

All — an adj ective ; awl — a shoemaker's tool 

Boy — a lad; buoy — a float 

In — a preposition ; inn — a small hotel 

Knew — did know ; new — not old 

The — an article; thee — a pronoun 

Time — duration ; thyme — a plant 

To — a preposition ; too — an adverb ; two — a numeral 

Would — a verb ; wood — timber 

Grammar — Parts of Speech 

A sentence is a group of words expressing a complete 
thought. 

In order to distinguish words in sentences, grammarians 
classify them into parts of speech. 

There are eight parts of speech : noun, pronoun, adj ec- 
tive, adverb, verb, preposition, conjunction and interjec- 
tion. 

A Noun is the name of any person or thing : Columbus, 
ship. 

A Pronoun stands for a noun, Columbus, who discov- 
ered, etc. 

An Adjective qualifies nouns: Columbus was a poor 
boy. 



16 READER FOR COMING AMERICANS 

An Adverb qualifies adjectives, verbs, or other adverbs: 
Columbus, extremely poor, waited very long for help, etc. 

A Verb denotes being or action. Columbus discovered 
America. Men live. 

A Preposition shows the relation between words : 
Columbus came to Portugal from Genoa. 

A Conjunction joins words and sentences: Columbus 
and his sailors, etc. 

An Interjection is a word expressing sudden and deep 
feeling: O fie, etc. 

Let the student name the parts of speech in the first 
five lines of the lesson. 



II. THE AMERICAN ABORIGINES 

When Columbus and the other early navigators 
discovered and explored the American continent the 
country was inhabited by the Red Men; they were 
called Indians as the country was supposed to be a 
part of India. Scholars differ in their ideas as to 
the origin of this race. Antiquarians claim to find 
evidences that the continent has been inhabited many 
thousands of years. The so-called Indians may have 
been descendants of this prehistoric people or their 
ancestors may have reached America from Asia at 
a comparatively recent date. 

The civilization which the Europeans found on 
this continent was varied. In Mexico, Central 
America and Peru the people lived in cities and were 
advanced in many of the arts — ruins of wonderful 
buildings still exist in these countries. In the terri- 
tory now occupied by the United States and Canada 



LESSONS IN HISTORY 17 

the Indians were in a barbaric state. The country 
was mostly forest and the inhabitants not numerous. 
They lived largely by hunting and fishing. Their 
houses were crude structures built of poles or logs, 
and their clothing was mostly made from the skins 
of animals, although these were often made into a 
soft leather (buckskin) and prettily colored and 
embroidered by the women. 

The white men were received at first as friends, but 
differences soon arose ; the colonists were overbearing 
and the natives were treacherous and revengeful. 
As the settlers increased in numbers and pushed fur- 
ther to the west their advance was disputed by the 
Indians who resented being driven from their homes 
and hunting grounds. For many years there was 
bitter strife along the borders. But there could be 
only one end; the Red Men were everywhere forced 
to yield before the superior enterprise of the white 
invaders and long ago became a thoroughly con- 
quered race. Many Indians have now adopted the 
new civilization and are prospering, especially as 
farmers; others are cared for by the government on 
tracts of land set apart for their use and called 
reservations. 

There are now about 300,000 Indians in the 
United States. Their long wars with the whites and 
among themselves, together with the ravages of con- 
tagious diseases and vices introduced by Europeans, 
fearfully reduced their numbers. In recent years 
however peace has generally prevailed. Schools and 
industrial institutions have been established by gov- 
ernment and Christian missionaries have made earnest 



18 READER FOR COMING AMERICANS 

efforts in their behalf. Under these conditions, 
though some tribes did not take kindly to the civili- 
zation of the white men, they are believed to be hold- 
ing their own as to numbers. 

Questions 

1. Why were the Red Men called Indians? 

2. What do we know of their origin? 

3. What about the civilization of the old Mexicans 
and Peruvians? 

4. Describe the Indians as found by the Puritan 
settlers. 

5. Tell what happened as these colonists pushed 
their settlements inland. 

6. What was the final result ? 

7. How many Indians are there now in the United 
States? 

8. Describe the different ways of living among the 
Indians at the present time and give the reasons for the 
same. 

Synonyms 

Antiquarian — student of Diseases — sicknesses 

the old Explored — searched 

Ancestors — forefathers Evidence — proof 

Advanced — progressed Enterprise — daring 

Barbaric— not civilized Especially — particular- 
Borders — frontiers ly 

Civilization — methods of Invader — newcomer 

living Numerous — many 

Comparatively — rela- Origin — beginning 

tively Occupied — possessed 

Conquered — overcome Recent — modern 

Contagious — catching Revengeful — unforgiv- 
Discovered — found ing 

Descendants — children of Reservation — land set 
Disputed — contested apart 



LESSONS IN HISTORY 19 

Strife — struggle Treacherous — false, 

Superior — higher and faithless 

better Vice — badness 

Territory — land 

Words Like in Sound 

But — a conjunction; butt — thick end 

High — tall, lofty; hie — hasten 

One — a number; won — did win 

Race — a people; race — to run 

Some — an adjective; sum — total 

Their — possessive pronoun; there — not here 

Grammar — N ouns 

Nouns form their plural by adding s to the singular: 
proof, proofs. 

Nouns ending in sh, ch, s and x add es: fish, fishes; 
church, churches. 

Nouns ending in y preceded by a consonant, change y 
to i before es : part^ parties. 

Nouns ending in / and fe change / and fe to v before 
es: wife, wives. 

Nouns ending in o add es: negro, negroes (exception: 
piano, pianos, etc.). 

Some nouns form their plural irregularly: ox, oxen; 
man, men; tooth, teeth. 

Nouns are of two classes: Common and proper. 

A Common Noun denotes a class of persons or ob- 
jects: man, tribe, year. 

A Proper Noun denotes a particular person or object: 
Columbus, Asia. 

Nouns have two genders, Masculine and Feminine: 
man, woman. 

Gender is expressed in three ways: 

1. By different word: man, woman; father, mother; 
bull, cow. 

2. By prefixing a word indicating sex: he-goat, she- 
goat; man-servant, woman-servant. 



20 READER FOR COMING AMERICANS 

S. By a suffix: lion, lioness; god, goddess; bride, 
bridegroom. 

Some nouns include both genders: child, parent. 
These are said to be of Common gender. 

Some nouns are not masculine nor feminine: stone, 
house. These are called Neuter nouns. 

Of course these last two classes of nouns are un- 
changed for they do not express gender. 

Let student find common and proper nouns in Lesson 
II. 



III. RIVALRY OF NATIONS 

After the discovery of the New World the mari- 
time nations of Europe were eager to gain possession 
of this territory and bring its wealth into their cof- 
fers. The rivals in this great race were the Span- 
iards, the French, the English, the Swedes and the 
Dutch. Spain held most of South and Central 
America, the region bordering on the Gulf of Mexico, 
and also laid claim to other large sections of North 
America. The French held sway along the St. 
Lawrence and down through the Ohio and Mississippi 
valleys. The English colonies occupied the eastern 
part of North America below the lakes and had the 
advantage of controlling nearly all of the Atlantic 
seacoast. The possessions of the Dutch and Swedes 
were comparatively insignificant. 

Spain and England first fought for the mastery. 
Britain was at war with Spain and was disputing 
with her the supremacy of the seas. In the New 
World her seamen harassed the Spanish colonies on 



LESSONS IN HISTORY 21 

both the Atlantic and Pacific coasts. To crush this 
rising sea power Philip II. (1588) prepared an 
immense fleet and sent it against his British foe. 
The destruction of the Spanish Armada in the Eng- 
lish channel is one of the events of history and led 
to Spain yielding all claims in North America, except- 
ing the Gulf countries of Mexico and Florida. 

In 1664 the English, being at war with the Dutch, 
made a bloodless conquest of New Netherlands — the 
country about the mouth of the Hudson and along 
the river as far north as Albany. 

The conflict was now between the English and the 
French. These nations had been at war periodically 
for centuries and naturally the strife followed them 
across the water. There were alternating periods 
of hostilities and quiet for many years. The tide 
turned in favor of the English when, by the Treaty 
of Utrecht (1713), France was compelled to cede to 
England its province of Acadia (Nova Scotia, New 
Brunswick and a part of Maine) — a section especially 
valuable on account of its fisheries. Forty years 
later began the final conflict, known as the French 
and Indian War (1755-63). The French were first 
driven from the Ohio valley ; then followed a varying 
campaign in which the French were finally driven 
into Canada. In 1759 "the Key City" of Quebec 
fell and the following year the English were in full 
possession of Canada which was formally ceded to 
England by the Treaty of Paris (1763). 

Louisiana, then including the immense and little 
known territory west of the Mississippi, had already 
been purchased of France by Spain so that the 



22 READER FOR COMING AMERICANS 

French now held not a foot of its splendid empire 
on the mainland of the American continent. The 
Anglo-Saxon was in practical control of the desti- 
nies of North America. 

Questions 

1. Name the nations that were rivals in the strife 
to obtain possession of the New World. 

2. What was their chief obj ect in this ? 

3. What parts of North America did Spain hold? 
France? the Dutch? the English? 

4. What special geographical advantage had the 
English colonies? 

5. What great event decided the question of mastery 
between England and Spain? 

6. What parts of North America did Spain keep ? 

7. How came the Dutch to lose New Netherlands? 

8. Were England and France often at war with 
each other? 

9- What province was France first obliged to give 
up? 

10. What was the outcome of the French and Indian 
War? 

11. What town was considered the "key city" of 
Canada ? 

12. When was it taken and by whom? 

13. Has France at this time any possessions in North 
America ? 

Synonyms 

Advantage — benefit Hostilities — warfare 

Armada — fleet Immense — large 

Cede — to give up Insignificant — small 

Coffers — treasuries Maritime — bordering on 
Destinies — future the sea 

Disputing — contending Rival— competitor 

Eager — anxious Supremacy — mastery 
Harass — molest 



LESSONS IN HISTORY 



23 



Words Like in Sound 

Down — lower; down — fine soft feathers 

Great — large; grate — framework of bars; grate — to 

rub harshly- 
Left — past of leave; left — opposite of right 
State — a part of the Union; state — a condition; state 

—to tell 

Grammar — Pronouns 

Pronouns are classified as: Personal, Demonstrative, 
Interrogative, Relative, Reflexive. 

Personal pronouns refer to the person who speaks, the 
person spoken to and the person spoken of: / assure 
you that he is a wise man. 

These pronouns have different forms as they precede 
or follow the verb or as they express possession: I 
struck him; he struck me; my horse; this book is mine. 

The following are the forms: 



1st Person 


2d Person 


Singular 


Plural 


Singular 


Plural 


my and mine 
me 


we 

our and ours 

us 


you and thou 
your and yours 
thy and thine 
you and thee 


you 

your and yours 

you 



Person 





Singular 




Plural 


Masculine 


Feminine 


Neuter 


Masculine, Feminine 
and Neuter 


he 
his 
him 


she 

her and hers 

her 


it 
its 
it 


they 

their and theirs 

them 



24 READER FOR COMING AMERICANS 

Demonstrative pronouns point out the person or object 
referred to: this, that, these, those: this man, these houses. 

Interrogative pronouns ask questions : who, which, 
what: who speaks? which of the houses? what shall I say? 

Relative pronouns refer to a noun used in the same 
sentence: who, which, that and what: The man who 
sings. Who has three forms : who before the verb, whom 
after verbs and prepositions, and whose expressing pos- 
session: Whose horse is this? The man of whom we 



Reflexive pronouns represent the action as falling on 
the actor: He injured himself. These are formed by 
adding self to the pronoun: Myself, ourselves, herself. 

Let the student find the pronouns in Lesson III. and 
state what kind they are. 



IV. THE DELIVERER OF AMERICA 

(1732-1799) 

George Washington, "the father of his country," 
was born in Virginia, February 22, 1732. His 
father, a well-to-do planter, died when George was 
eleven years old and the boy grew to manhood under 
the careful training of a wise and cultured mother. 
His early education was not broad but he excelled 
in mathematics and at the age of sixteen became a 
surveyor. He was tall and manly in form and noted 
for his physical strength and courage, his careful 
business methods and his high moral principles. When 
nineteen he was given an important position in the 
Colonial militia and, during the French and Indian 
war which soon followed, he made a brilliant record 
for bravery and efficiency. At the close of hostilities, 



LESSONS IN HISTORY 25 

at the age of twenty-seven, he married a beautiful 
and wealthy widow and for the next sixteen years 
lived the quiet life of a Virginia planter. But when 
in 1775 the War of Independence broke out people 
looked to Washington as their leader and for the 
long years of the Revolution he led the Colonial army 
with great skill, though through many discourage- 
ments and with varying success, until England finally 
acknowledged the independence of the American 
States. After the adoption of the Constitution 
(1787), Washington was chosen as the first Presi- 
dent of the United States and held the office for eight 
years. At the close of his second term he retired 
voluntarily and gladly to private life, honored and 
respected by the entire country. He died at his home 
of Mt. Vernon, on the banks of the Potomac River, 
December, 1799, in his sixty-eighth year. 

Washington was a man of great courage and devo- 
tion. He loved truthfulness and honesty ; was dis- 
creet and knew men. His wisdom and bravery were 
invaluable to the nation in the dark days of the war, 
while his qualities as a statesman were equally service- 
able to the nation when jealousies divided the States. 
Men of his stamp make and save nations. 

Explanations 

A colony is a company of people transplanted from 
their mother country to another country or province and 
still remaining subj ect to the parent state. The thirteen 
American colonies that revolted against the oppression of 
the government of England were a mixed population, 
but the great majority were descendants of the early 
settlers who represented the best blood of England. 



26 READER FOR COMING AMERICANS 

Questions 

1. What was George Washington called after the 
close of the Revolution? 

2. Where was he born and when? 

3. Why are we not likely to forget the day of his 
birth? 

4. What business did he enter as a young man? 

5. Tell something about his appearance and 
character. 

6. How old was he when he became an officer of 
the Virginia militia ? 

7. What was his record during the war between the 
English and French? 

8. To what position was he called by Congress when 
the War for Independence broke out? 

9. What did he do for his country during the years 
of this war ? 

10. After the adoption of the Constitution what office 
did he hold and for how long? 

11. Is it common in your native country for men 
holding honorable and powerful positions to retire volun- 
tarily to private life ? 

Tell the students about any historical places or monu- 
ments of Revolutionary interest in your vicinity. 

Synonyms 

Brilliant — bright, glori- Mathematics — arithme- 

ous tic, etc. 

Constitution — rules of Militia — citizen soldiers 

government Plantation — large farm 

Discouragements — trou- Principles — character 

bles, hindrances Revolution — change of 
Efficiency — usefulness government 

Hostilities — warfare Surveyor — land measurer 

Independence — freedom Voluntarily — willingly 



LESSONS IN HISTORY 27 

Words Like in Sound 

Born — beginning of life ; borne — carried 
Be — exist; bee — an insect 
Die — perish; dye — to color 

Grammar — Adjectives and Adverbs 

Qualities can be compared, hence adjectives and 
adverbs have comparison. 

Adjectives and adverbs form their comparative and 
superlative degrees by adding er and est to the positive: 
Tall, tall-er, tall-est; late, late-r, late-st. 

If the adjective and adverb are of more than one syl- 
lable, more and most are used: beautiful, more beautiful, 
most beautiful; recently, more recently, most recently. 

Notice the following: Holy, holz-er, holi-est; thin, 
thin-ner, thin-nest. Adjectives ending in y change y 
to i before er and est; and those ending in a consonant 
preceded by a short vowel double the consonant. 

The diminishing quantity is expressed by less and 
least; noble, less noble, least noble. 

Notice the following irregular adjectives and adverbs: 





Adjectives 






Adverbs 




Good 


better 


best 


Well 


better 


best 


Bad 


worse 


worst 


111 


worse 


worst 


Much 


more 


most 


Much 


more 


most 


Little 


less 


least 


Little 


less 


least 


Late 


later or 
latter 


last 









Adverbs are generally formed from adjectives by the 
suffix ly: A sweet apple; he sings sweetly. 

Adverbs express time, place, manner and degree: We 
rose early; he is inside; he speaks softly; he is greatly 
honored. 

The Numerals are either adjectives or adverbs: Three 
ships ; the second day ; they came two by two. 

Let the student find the adjectives and adverbs in 
Lesson IV. 



28 READER FOR COMING AMERICANS 

V. AN ATTACK ON QUEBEC 

(September-December, 1775) 

Quebec, in the Revolutionary War, was the key to 
Canada. Washington wished to take the city and 
ordered Benedict Arnold to march with eleven hun- 
dred men to attempt the arduous task. The distance 
between Boston and Quebec is 350 miles. The men 
covered the first 150 with ease, but the 200 miles of 
wilderness still to be covered meant hardship and 
suffering to the patriots. As they ascended the 
Kennebec River much of the cargo was lost; when 
they came to the Dead River a rainstorm had caused 
it to overflow its banks and their boats were either 
sunk or dashed to pieces and their provisions swept 
away. Their rations ran short, and a hundred miles 
of wilderness was before them. The men suffered 
hunger, their faithful dogs were killed and eaten. 
When they reached Quebec, the rollcall was answered 
by only 600 men, whose tattered clothes, bare feet 
and haggard faces testified to the suffering they had 
endured. 

The garrison in Quebec had been notified of their 
coming so that to surprise the fort was out of the 
question. Arnold camped in front of the city and 
was joined by Montgomery who had taken the city 
of Montreal. Even with the re-enforcement the 
patriots could not storm the city, so their only hope 
lay in a night surprise. The last night of the year 
was chosen for the attempt. A snowstorm raged, 
but at midnight the patriots started. Arnold led 



LESSONS IN HISTORY 29 

the attack on one side of the town and Montgomery 
on the other. Early in the engagement Arnold was 
wounded and left bleeding in the snow. Morgan 
took command, carried the batteries and forced his 
way into the streets of the lower town, where he 
waited the signal of Montgomery. 

This young general went cautiously round a steep 
cliff and came face to face with the enemy. A storm 
of grapeshot swept the narrow pass and Mont- 
gomery fell dead. His troops, confused and dis- 
mayed, gave way and retreated. Morgan and his 
men kept up the fight all night in the streets, but in 
the morning they were outnumbered and were forced 
to surrender. The midnight attack had failed and 
the "key to Canada" remained in the possession of 
the British. 

Explanations 

The relative positions of Boston and Quebec to be 
shown on the map. 

Quebec was founded by the French 1608 and captured 
by the English 1759- 

Questions 

1. What did Washington wish to do? 

2. What was Quebec called? 

3. How many soldiers did Arnold take? 

4. Tell about Arnold's journey from Boston to 
Quebec. 

5. What rivers did he ascend? 

6. How many men had he at the end of the journey? 

7. Who joined Arnold before Quebec? 

8. How did they attempt to take the city? 

9. Describe the attack and its results. 



SO READER FOR COMING AMERICANS 
Synonyms 

Ascending — going up Retreat — falling back 

Confused — perplexed Signal — sign 

Dismayed — filled with Surprise — take unawares 

fear Surrender — yield 

Patriot — lover of his Tattered — ragged 

country Troops — soldiers 

Provision — food Wilderness — forest 
Ration — allowance 

Words Like in Sound 

Felt — did feel; felt — a kind of cloth 
Night — darkness; knight — a title 

Still — an adverb; still — calm; still — a place for dis- 
tilling 

Grammar — Verbs 

Verbs are of two kinds : Transitive and intransitive. 

Transitive verbs direct the action to an object: The 
men killed the dogs. 

Intransitive verbs limit the action to the actor: The 
plan failed. 

The verb "killed" (The men killed the dogs) is in the 
Active Voice. If we change the form to "The dogs were 
killed by the men/' the verb is in the Passive Voice. The 
difference is that the noun following the verb in the first 
form precedes it in the second. Intransitive verbs, 
limiting the action to the actor, cannot have a passive 
voice. 

The action may be expressed in different manners: 

1. It may be a statement or a question: The garri- 
son is attacked; who attacks the garrison? Here the 
verb is in the Indicative Mood. 

2. It may be a command or an advice : Bring me the 
horse; thou shalt not kill. Here the verb is in the Im- 
perative Mood. 



LESSONS IN HISTORY 31 

3. It may be dependent upon another action: If I 
were in your place I would not go. Here the verb is in 
the Subjunctive Mood. 

4. It may refer to simple action: To sleep. Here 
the verb is in the Infinitive Mood. 

An action may take place in the present, past or in 
the future. Hence we have three tenses : Present, Past, 
Future: I sleep, I slept, I will sleep. 

The verb in the third person singular, present indica- 
tive, takes the s form: He write-*; the man run-s; the 
kite flie-s; it echo-es. The rules governing the forma- 
tion of the plural of nouns are equally applicable in the 
formation of the s-form of the verb. 

The Past tense is formed by adding d or ed to the 
present form of the verb: We love, we love-d; it snows, 
it snow-ed ; we carry, we carri-ed. These are called reg- 
ular verbs; those which form the past tense in any other 
way are irregular, as I run, I ran. 

The Future tense is formed by the helping verbs, shall 
and will: I shall run; we will run. 

Find the verbs in Lesson V. 



VI. THE PALMETTO LOGS AND VICTORY 

(June 28, 1776) 

Fifty British ships and transports, anchored off 
the bar at Charleston, determined to capture the city 
and punish South Carolina, which had been one of 
the first States to declare its independence. Colonel 
Moultrie, in command of the patriots, had built a 
fort on Sullivan's Island, guarding the channel lead- 
ing into the harbor. The fort was constructed of 
palmetto logs and sand, mounted thirty-one cannon 
and was manned by 450 patriots. 



32 READER FOR COMING AMERICANS 

The morning of the conflict the British fleet came 
up the channel with the tide. Four of the largest 
ships, carrying from twenty-eight to fifty guns each, 
anchored broadside to the fort while the smaller war 
vessels took position in a second line. The fleet 
opened fire and the missiles fell thick and fast upon 
the fort, but most of them were buried harmlessly 
in the sand. The bombardment was kept up all the 
morning but the little fort was not demolished. At 
noon the British attempted to change the position of 
their ships but in the effort three vessels were stuck 
fast on the shoals. The gunners at the fort saw 
their opportunity and made every shot tell on the 
enemy's ships. The shots splintered the masts and 
made sad havoc on the decks. Moultrie passed from 
gun to gun, cheering his men. "Take good aim, 
boys," said he, "and don't waste your powder." The 
flagship was pierced and on one occasion every man 
on deck was swept off except the admiral. 

The fort also had its trial ; when the flag was shot 
away and fell on the beach outside, Sergeant Jasper, 
leaping through one of the cannon openings, rescued 
it. He then fastened the flag to a cannon rammer 
and planted it again on the ramparts amidst the 
rain of shot and shell. Troops were landed from the 
transports and the fort was attacked in the rear, 
but the deadly fire of the riflemen drove the soldiers 
back. With the setting sun the roar of battle slack- 
ened, the attack had failed. At midnight with the 
ebb of the tide the battered vessels — a shadow of 
what they were that morning— slipped their cables 
and sailed out into the darkness with their dead. 



LESSONS IN HISTORY 33 

The victory was Moultrie's and the British fleet was 
so shattered that it could neither fight nor go to sea. 

Questions 

1. How large a fleet did the British send to Charles- 
ton? 

2. Why did they especially wish to punish South 
Carolina ? 

3. Why did the fleet anchor outside the bar? 

4. Who commanded the patriots? 

5. Where was the fort built? 

6. What advantage had the earthworks over a stone 
wall? 

7. Why did the four war vessels anchor broadside 
to the fort? 

8. Tell what Sergeant Jasper did. 

9. What part did the troops from the transports 
take in the battle? 

10. How did the conflict end? 

Synonyms 

Admiral — high naval of- Missile — projectile 

fleer Opportunity — chance 

Attempted — tried Palmetto — a kind of palm 

Battered — damaged Position — place 

Cable — anchor rope Ramparts — wall, embank- 
Channel — passage ment 

Construct — make, build Rescue — save 

Declare — assert Shoal — sunken ground 

Demolished — ruined Splintering — shattering 

Ebb — flowing out Transport — troop-ship 

Words Like in Sound 
Bar — bank of sand; bar — piece of metal; bar — to 
exclude 

Fast — rapid; fast — firm; fast — to abstain from food 
Rain — water from the clouds; reign — rule 
Sink — to go down; sink — a kitchen fixture 
Sun — source of light; son — a male child 



34 READER FOR COMING AMERICANS 
Grammar — Prepositions, Conjunctions and Interjections 

PREPOSITIONS 

Precision of statement often depends upon the use of 
the right preposition after the verb. 

After verbs expressing rest : in, on, at and by are used : 
He rests in the house. 

After verbs expressing motion: into, to, unto, toward 
and from are used: He goes into the house. 

By indicates the actor; with the instrument: He was 
wounded by his friend with a sword. 

Between is used of two persons; among of more than 
two : Divide it between the two sons ; divide it among 
the five sons. 

CONJUNCTIONS 

Conjunctions join words and phrases; they are of 
three kinds: co-ordinate, subordinate and correlative. 

Co-ordinate conjunctions couple independent propo- 
sitions: He went to town and bought a horse. 

Subordinate conjunctions couple a dependent to a 
principal sentence: He won the prize because he was 
industrious. 

Correlative conjunctions go in pairs: He was neither 
wise nor good. The most common are: both-and; 
either-or; neither-nor; whether-or; as-as; so-as; not- 
only; but-also. 

As-as makes equal comparison; so-as, unequal. 

INTERJECTIONS 

Interjections are of two kinds: 

1. Simple words: O blessed retirement. 

2. Words in themselves other parts of speech, but 
used as interjections: Peace! 

Point out the prepositions and conjunctions in Lesson 
VI. 



LESSONS IN HISTORY 35 

VII. THE PATRIOT SPY 

(September, 1776) 

In the fall of 1776 Washington's heart was very 
heavy; his army had been defeated in the Battle of 
Long Island and he could muster only 14,000 men, 
most of whom were short of clothing, shoes, blankets 
and tents. The British army, numbering 25,000, 
was encamped along the shores of New York Bay 
and East River, while in the harbor anchored a large 
fleet of warships ready to assist the land forces at 
a moment's notice. Winter was fast approaching 
and Washington wanted to find out what point the 
enemy were planning to attack. He asked for a 
volunteer to go to the British camp to ascertain 
what was going on there. Officer after officer re- 
fused and when the enterprise was about to be 
abandoned for want of a man to undertake the 
perilous mission, Nathan Hale came forward and 
said, "I'll undertake it." 

He received his instructions from Washington that 
afternoon and accompanied by a trusty soldier 
started on his mission. Attired as a schoolmaster 
he crossed the sound, landed on Long Island and 
soon reached the British camp. He pretended to be 
tired of the rebel cause and said he was in search of 
a place to teach school. During the next two weeks 
he went from place to place drawing plans of forts 
and watching the movements of troops, patrols and 
guards. He accomplished his task and began his 
return trip to the American lines. He made his way 



36 READER FOR COMING AMERICANS 

through the woods and past all the British camp 
fires on Long Island until he reached in safety the 
point where he had first landed. 

A boat was to meet him here the next morning to 
take him over to the mainland. He slept that night 
in a tavern frequented by British soldiers. Early 
the next morning, seeing a strange boat coming to 
shore, Hale thought, "That is the very boat I am 
looking for." He hastened toward the beach but 
was amazed to see six men standing erect in the boat 
aiming their muskets at him. He was taken to New 
York and the following morning was condemned to 
die the death of a spy. His executioner, as he led 
him to the place of execution, said, "Give us your 
dying speech, you young rebel." The young patriot 
said, "I only regret that I have but one life to lose 
for my country." 

Explanations 

Describe on a map the position of the two armies and 
trace as nearly as possible Nathan Hale's journey. 

Tell about the statue of Nathan Hale in Union Square, 
New York City. 

Questions 

1. What defeat did Washington suffer in the summer 
of 1776? 

2. Describe the condition of his army as winter 
approached. 

3. How did he attempt to ascertain the plans of the 
English ? 

4. Who volunteered for the perilous mission? 

5. What was the sure fate of a spy if found out? 

6. Tell what you can of the story of Nathan Hale. 

7. How was he captured? 

8. What were his last words? 



LESSONS IN HISTORY 37 

Synonyms 

Abandoned — given up Defeated — overcame 

Accomplished — finished Heavy — sad 

Amazed — astonished Muster — gather 

Approaching — coming on Pretended — made believe 

Ascertain — find out Sound — a body of water 

Assist — help Trusty — faithful 

Words Like in Sound 

Here — at this place; hear — to perceive sound with the 
ear 

Meet — to come together; meat — animal food; meet — 
proper 

Week — seven days; weak — not strong 

Grammar — The Sentence 
The natural order of the English sentence is: 
Subject Verb Object 

Washington fought the British 

Each of these may be amplified by modifying words. 

Washington, the patriotic general, bravely fought the 
arrogant British. 

Every sentence has a main assertion. Care should 
be taken not to hide it by modifying words, parenthetical 
clauses, etc. Half the art of composition is to place the 
modifying words in the right relation to the principal 
parts of the sentence. 

If a sentence is unwieldy, cut it up. State your main 
proposition in simple words, then add the qualifying 
words, always being careful to put them as near as pos- 
sible to the part they qualify. 

Punctuation marks are used to make the meaning of 
what we write as plain as possible. 

The Comma (,) is used: 

1. To separate two or more verbs having the same 
obj ect : The horse ran off, upset the carriage, and killed 
itself. 



38 READER FOR COMING AMERICANS 

2. To separate subordinate sentences: The horse, 
which I bought, ran off. 

3. To separate qualifying words : The horse, fright- 
ened at the automobile, ran off. 

4. To separate words when and, or or nor is omitted: 
The horse, carriage, and harness were destroyed. 

The Period (.) is put at the end of every sentence 
and after all abbreviations: D. D. 

The Comma and Period are the marks most frequently 
used. 

The other marks are semicolon (;) colon ( :) interro- 
gation (?) and exclamation (!). 

A sentence which has two or more large divisions, 
within which the comma is used, should have its large 
divisions separated by a semicolon. If within the large 
divisions the comma and the semicolon are used, the large 
divisions should be separated from each other by the 
colon. 

Marks of interrogation are used after questions. 

Marks of exclamation are used after expressions of 
violent emotion. 

Name punctuation marks in Lesson VII. 



VIII. "UNCIVILIZED BACKWOODSMEN" 

(1778-1779) 

The American frontiersmen rendered valuable ser- 
vice during the Revolutionary War. One of the 
most efficiently conducted campaigns was that of 
Colonel George Clark, of Kentucky, against Kaskas- 
kia and Vincennes, two British forts that controlled 
the Illinois country. Between the first of these and 
the frontiersmen lay 100 miles of wilderness in which 
various tribes of Indians lived, who, instigated by 



LESSONS IN HISTORY 39 

the British, made hostile raids and were a constant 
menace to the border settlements. Knowing that the 
surest defense would be to carry the war into the 
enemy's country, Colonel Clark gathered 200 brave 
men, sailed down the Ohio River and journeyed 
across country in the hot days of summer to Fort 
Kaskaskia. He arrived in the village when the British 
officers and the light-hearted Creoles were engaged 
in a dance. The garrison thought themselves so safe 
that even the sentinels had left their posts. Clark, 
leaving a few men at the entrance, went boldly into 
the great hall and, leaning against the door posts, 
watched the gay dancers. At last an Indian spied 
him and springing to his feet gave the war whoop. 
The dance stopped, women screamed and the men 
rushed to the door. Clark coolly said : "Go on with 
your dance, but remember that henceforth you dance 
under the American flag and not under that of 
Great' Britain." 

Several months later in the depths of winter Colonel 
Clark with less than 200 men set out for a march 
of 140 miles across country to Fort Vincennes. 
Their journey over the Illinois prairies was not diffi- 
cult but when, in February, they reached the low 
Wabash country, the ice had just broken up and the 
country was flooded. The troops waded through 
icy water by day and slept on the muddy hillocks at 
night. Their food gave out but they pushed on and 
finally found shelter in a wood two miles from their 
desired goal. At nightfall, Clark and his brave 
fellows quietly entered the village and before the 
British general knew what was going on he and his 



40 READER FOR COMING AMERICANS 

soldiers were safely intrenched within rifle shot of the 
fort. The garrison attempted a brave defense, but 
with unerring aim the patriots picked off the gunners 
and silenced the guns. General Hamilton was soon 
obliged to give up the fort, as he said, "To a set of 
uncivilized backwoodsmen with rifles." Thus the vast 
territory between the Ohio and the Mississippi Rivers 
and south of the Great Lakes fell into the hands of 
the patriots. 

Explanations 

Creole: One born of European parents in the Ameri- 
can colonies of France or Spain or in the States which 
were once such colonies; especially a person of French 
or Spanish descent who is a native inhabitant of Louis- 
iana or one of the States adjoining, bordering on the 
Gulf of Mexico. — Webster. 

Kashashia is situated on the Illinois side of the Missis- 
sippi River about half way between the present city of 
St. Louis and the mouth of the Ohio. Vincennes is on 
the Indiana side of the Wabash River — which here di- 
vides that state from Illinois — and about seventy miles 
from where that river enters the Ohio. Colonel Clark's 
march was a little north of west and across the entire 
width of Southern Illinois. 

Questions 

1. What two campaigns did Colonel Clark conduct? 

2. Tell what led him to do this. 

3. How many men did he take on his first cam- 
paign? 

4. Tell what you think of the soldiers. 

5. Where was Kaskaskia situated and how did Clark 
reach it? 

6. What was taking place when Colonel Clark 
arrived? 

7. Tell what he did. 



LESSONS IN HISTORY 41 

8. How far was Kaskaskia from Vincennes? 

9. Tell what you know of the march to Vincennes. 

10. Tell how Clark and his men took the fort. 

1 1 . Why were not the soldiers in the fort able to fire 
their cannon? 

12. What words did General Hamilton use in his 
report of the surrender? 

13. What were the results of these campaigns? 

Synonyms 

Frontiersmen — pioneers Prairies — grassy plains 

(men of the border) Rendered — gave 

Harbored — sheltered Rifle — a Ion g-b a r r e 1 e d, 

Hillocks — little hills small-bore gun 

Instigated — incited Unerring — sure 
Menace— danger 

Words Like in Sound 

Flag — banner; flag — flat stone; flag — a plant; flag — 
to droop 

Lean — to rest against ; lean — not fat ; lien — a property 
claim 

Post — a large stake; post — a station; post — to inform; 
post — to place 

Grammar — Capitals, Punctuation 

Capital letters are to be used in the following in- 
stances : 

1. In the first word of every sentence. 

2. In the first word of every line of poetry. 

3. In the first word of every direct quotation. 

4. In the pronoun I and the interjection 0. 

5. In words used of the Godhead. 

6. In all proper names, titles of books, titles of per- 
sons, and names of corporations. 

7. In words personifying objects. 

Let the student correct the following : We love j ames. 
When i was in new york city. We worship god the 



42 READER FOR COMING AMERICANS 

father. His name shall be wonderful, counsellor, mighty 
god. He wrote the "fall of rome." He exclaimed: "o 
the misery of life!" The concern is called, the lehigh 
coal and navigation company. Behold, wisdom calleth 
thee; justice sits on her throne; mercy is pleading. His 
words were: "you may depend on me." 

our fortress is the good greenwood, 

our tent the cypress tree; 
we know the forest round us 

as seamen know the sea. 
we know its walls of thorny vines, 

its blades of reedy grass, 
its safe and silent islands 

within the dark morass. 

Punctuate and put capitals in the following: "For 
want of a nail the shoe was lost for want of a shoe the 
horse was lost and for want of a horse the rider was lost 
the boy fell into the water and was drowned the book 
which you gave me was very interesting whether or not 
I can go is doubtful george allan and henry swam 
across the river the soldiers alarmed the enemy and 
took to flight. 



IX. A MIDNIGHT SURPRISE 

(July, 1779) 

Stony Point is a rocky bluff, shooting out from the 
west shore more than half a mile into the Hudson 
River and, in its highest part, rising nearly 200 feet 
from the water. It is a natural sentinel, guarding 
the far-famed Highlands of the Hudson. 

Early in the War of the Revolution, the British 
gained possession of the place and strongly fortified 
it, christened it "Little Gibraltar" and defied the 



LESSONS IN HISTORY 43 

rebels to take it. Washington decided to take Stony 
Point and give the English a surprise. "Mad 
Anthony" Wayne was chosen to lead in the desperate 
exploit. The day before the intended movement the 
dogs for three miles about the fort were killed, lest 
some unexpected bark should alarm the garrison. 
Nine hundred men were chosen for the venture and 
not a gun was to be loaded, except those of two 
special companies. At eight o'clock in the evening 
the troops were halted about a mile from the fort. 
No man was permitted to speak and they ate their 
supper of bread and cold meat in silence. After the 
meal their leader read the order of battle and the 
men were permitted to rest for several hours. 

At midnight the troops fell into line and no man 
was to utter a word until the main parapet of the 
fort was reached. A negro named Pompey, who 
knew the password for the night, was their guide. 
The two companies with loaded guns were to make a 
false attack in the center while the main columns 
were to advance on either side, Wayne leading that 
on the right. The approach lay for some 600 feet 
over a narrow neck of marshy ground where the men 
had to wade waist deep in the water. As the patriots 
were discovered the pickets gave the alarm, the gar- 
rison rushed to their posts and opened upon the 
Americans with great guns and musketry. The two 
companies with loaded guns, forming the center 
column, opened a brisk fire and drew the attention 
of the garrison, while the main columns pushed 
rapidly forward on either side, cutting their way 
through the timber defenses and scaling the slopes, 



44 READER FOR COMING AMERICANS 

and entered the fort simultaneously. The resistance 
was stubborn, but Wayne's sturdy yeomen, fighting 
only with their bayonets, overpowered the enemy and 
were masters of the fort in the brief space of half an 
hour. Only one man managed to escape from the 
garrison ; he leaped into the river and swam to the 
British ship Vulture, then lying in the river. 
Washington soon came to Stony Point and offered 
thanks to Almighty God who had been "our shield 
and protection amid the dangers we had been called 
to encounter." 

Explanations 

Gibraltar: An immense rocky promontory in the 
South of Spain, guarding the straits of the same name 
which connect the Mediterranean Sea with the Atlantic 
Ocean. It rises to the height of 1440 feet above the sea 
and is connected with the mainland by a narrow neck of 
flat ground. It was captured by the English in 1704. 
The limestone rock contains many curious caves, and addi- 
tional excavations have been made for purposes of forti- 
fication. The rock is defended by a thousand guns, 
many of whose black muzzles peer from openings made 
in the solid rock. The place is considered impregnable 
and is the "key to the Mediterranean." 

Questions 

l- On what river is Stony Point situated? 
Describe its location and character. 
What did the British call it? Why? 
Why did Washington wish to capture it? 

5. What officer had charge of the movement? 

6. Why were the dogs in the neighborhood killed ? 
How many men did Wayne take with him? 
How many were there in the British garrison? 
Describe the order of attack. 



LESSONS IN HISTORY 45 

10. How were the Americans to use their guns? 

11. Describe the battle. 

12. How many of the British soldiers escaped? 

13. What did Washington do upon his arrival? 

14. What does this tell you as to Washington's char- 



acter 



Synonyms 

Bluff — a bold headland Pickets — outside senti- 

Brisk — rapid nels 

Christened — named Scaling — climbing 

Company — part of a reg- Selected — picked out 

iment Sentinel — guard 

Halted — stopped Simultaneous — at the 

Marshy — wet same time 

Parapet — wall, breast- Silence — stillness 

work Venture — a risk 

Yeomen — countrymen 

Words Like in Sound 

Bark — noise made by a dog; bark — the covering on a 
tree; bark — a sailing vessel 

Lie — to recline; lie — an untruth 

Grammar — The Article 

A or an is used in speaking indefinitely of one indi- 
vidual or of an entire class, hence it is called the indefi- 
nite article: A horse, a crowd, an eagle, an angle. 

The is used to point out a particular object or class 
of objects, hence it is called the definite article: The 
man, the apples. 

Notice: "A priest and king" mean one man holding 
two offices. 

"A priest and a king" means one for each office. 

The article a generally stands before the adjective: 
A white horse. But if the adjective is many, what or 
such, or if the adjective is preceded by too, so, how or 
as, the article stands between it and the noun: Many a 
day is lost; so heinous a crime. If ■ great stands before 



46 READER FOR COMING AMERICANS 

many the article resumes its usual place: We suffered 
a great many things. 

The is used before the names of rivers, mountains and 
seas : The Hudson ; the Adirondacks ; the Mediterranean. 

The is used before the name of a people when spoken 
of collectively: The Americans; the Dutch. 

When used with certain nouns it denotes a calling: 
The church; the bar. 

When both and all qualify nouns the is put between 
the adjective and the noun: All the plans have failed; 
both the parties are wrong. 

Correct the following: 

A apple falls to a ground. A men go to work. A 
many sorrow have we. Great many a chains are forged. 
The both horses are lame. A too heinous crime. A so 
great crowd. An horse for sale. Red River runs to 
the bay. Behring Sea is in dispute. 

Notice: "A Daniel has come to judgment," means 
one possessing a character similar to Daniel. 

The most wicked, the most atrocious, the boldest villain 
is for the sake of emphasis. 



X. THE OBELISK WITH THE EMPTY 
SPACE 

On the battlefield of Saratoga stands an obelisk 
commemorating the battle fought there during the 
Revolutionary War. Four great leaders led the 
patriots to victory, but upon this obelisk only three 
bronze tablets are seen — the side to the south has an 
empty space. The fourth leader, Benedict Arnold, 
who won so great a name in this battle, forfeited his 
place on this monument because he betrayed his 
country when fighting for freedom and independence. 



LESSONS IN HISTORY 47 

Arnold, a brave and efficient soldier, asked for the 
command of West Point, which was the door of 
communication for the Continental forces, between 
New York and New England. Washington, in con- 
sideration for his services, gave him the command. 
Arnold, proud and ambitious, labored under the de- 
lusion that his services were not appreciated and that 
he was not promoted as rapidly as he ought to be. 
In this state of mind he made a bargain with the 
British to deliver West Point into their hands for 
$30,000 and a major-general's commission in the 
British army. Had the plan succeeded the patriot 
cause might possibly have failed. Fortunately the 
spy who was the intermediary in the plot was cap- 
tured at the critical moment, the treason of Arnold 
was discovered and West Point was saved. The 
traitor, however, made his escape to a British gun- 
boat that was lying in the river and he lived to take 
up arms against his country. He is said to have 
asked a patriot prisoner once what the Americans 
would do with him should he fall into their hands. 
The man replied, "Bury with the honors of war the 
leg shot at Quebec but hang on a gibbet the rest of 
your body." Arnold died in London in 1801, de- 
spised and neglected even by the English people them- 
selves. 

Questions 

1. What took place in Saratoga in the fall of 1777? 

2. Why was Benedict Arnold's name omitted from 
the battle monument? 

3. Name some of Arnold's qualities. 



48 READER FOR COMING AMERICANS 

4. Why was the possession of West Point especially- 
necessary ? 

5. Tell how Arnold's treason was discovered. 

6. Tell the conversation between Arnold and a cap- 
tured prisoner. 

7. Indicate the battleground on the map and if 
possible show a picture of the obelisk. 

Synonyms 

Aims — aspires Intermediary — a go-be- 

Bronze — a composite tween 

metal Obelisk — monument 
Commemorating — in Promotion — advance- 
memory of ment 
Commission — office Reprimanded — blamed 
Confided — trusted Tablet — place for in- 
Efficient — capable scription 
Forfeited — lost Trait — habit 
Gibbet — gallows 

Words Like in Sound 

Bury — cover up ; berry — a small fruit 
Made — past of make; maid — a young girl 
Seen — past of see; scene — a view; scene — part of a 
stage play 

Grammar — Correct Concord 

Good composition must conform: 

1. To grammatical usages. 

2. To the right use of words. 

3. To words fit for the occasion. 

When writing be sure that you have something to say,, 
then say it in a direct way and use your own language. 
Short sentences are preferable to long ones. 
Good English words are preferable to classical words. 
Everything should be called by its proper name. 



LESSONS IN HISTORY 49 

The verb must always agree with the subject: I am 
sorry; we are sorry. 

Two or more nouns connected by and are followed by 
a plural verb: Honor, glory and dominion are the fruits. 

If two nouns, one negative and one affirmative, are 
connected by and the verb agrees with the affirmative: 
Truth, and not prejudices, is to be our guide. 

As well as connecting singular nouns is followed by 
the verb in the singular: John, as well as James, goes to 
town. 

Singular nouns connected by and, if preceded by each, 
every, no, are followed by the verb in the singular : Each 
man and woman was introduced. 

Correct the following: 

I's going to town. You's doing well. John and his 
wife goes to market. The oats I sowed is good. I gives 
him the slip. Justice as well as mercy are needed. 
Virtue, and not fine words, are the measure of men. 
Each one of the soldiers go home. No man and no 
woman were safe. Every house and every stable were 
burned to the ground. 

Observe: "The clergy sign the remonstrance." Here 
each one in the profession is referred to and so the verb 
is in the plural. "The legislature sits" ; here we regard 
the body collectively and so the verb is in the singular. 



XI. AREA OF THE UNITED STATES 

By the Treaty of Paris (September 3, 1783), after 
the War of Independence, the United States came 
into possession of 827,844 square miles of territory. 
Twenty years later the land between the Mississippi 
and the crest of the Rocky Mountains, was purchased 
from France. In 1818 Florida was purchased from 
Spain, and next came the Oregon Territory which 



50 READER FOR COMING AMERICANS 

was acquired by treaty from Great Britain (1846). 
One year later, the Republic of Texas was annexed, 
and, in the following year, at the close of the 
Mexican War, the territory north of the Rio Grande 
and Gila Rivers was relinquished to the United States. 
Five years later the Gadsden Purchase was made, 
establishing the boundary of the United States on 
the Pacific coast. In 1867 Alaska was acquired by 
purchase from Russia for $7,200,000. The Hawaiian 
Islands were formally annexed by the United States, 
August 12, 1898. Porto Rico, the Philippines and 
Guam were ceded to the United States by the Treaty 
of Paris (December 10, 1898) as a sequence of the 
Spanish-American War. Thus at present the area 
of the United States is 3,726,500 square miles. 

Continental United States, exclusive of Alaska and 
the island possessions, contains 2,972,584 square 
miles of land surface, which is somewhat less than 
Europe (3,700,000 square miles). Upon this terri- 
tory, populated by the nations of Europe, has grown 
up a race which is hardier and stronger than any of 
those dwelling in the Old World. The European 
stock has been improved by long residence in this 
favored land. The story of how the race has grown 
and how it has developed the resources of the country 
is full of interest and encouragement to all. 

Questions 

1. What resulted from the Treaty of Paris, 1783? 

2. Forty years later what large addition of territory 
was made by purchase from France ? 

3. From whom did the United States purchase 
Florida ? 



LESSONS IN HISTORY 51 

4. How was Texas acquired? 

5. What great State on the Pacific was gained as a 
result of the Mexican War? 

6. What territory was purchased from Russia? 

7. What islands came to the United States as a result 
of the recent Spanish- American War? 

8. How has the present population of the country 
been made up? 

9- What has been the effect of the mixing of the 
different European races in this country ? 

Synonyms 

Annexed — added Relinquish — yield 

Area — extent Sequence — following 

Crest — summit after 

Improved — made better Treaty — agreement 

Grammar — Possession 

Possession is expressed by the possessive pronouns, by 
apostrophe and s added to the noun and by the preposi- 
tion of before the noun : Mine; my house ; John's horse ; 
the city of New York. The last two forms are often 
interchangeable. If the source of possession is a person 
's are preferable; if a thing, of is preferable. 

"The soldier's cloak" is correct, but if a relative clause 
follows the better usage is, "The cloak of the soldier 
who fell in battle." 

"His brother Prince Arthur's wife" — when two or 
three nouns refer to the same person the 's are only af- 
fixed to the last. 

"A ring of gold" — here of expresses the material of 
which something is made. 

Notice the following forms : The boys' hats ; for con- 
science' sake; for appearance' sake. 

Correct the following: The city's heart; a house of 
John's; mine garden; John's wife's sister's home; this 
is the general's sword who won the battle; the girls's 
school; the boys' hat; the store's window. 



52 READER FOR COMING AMERICANS 
XII. GEOGRAPHICAL DIVISIONS 

We have seen the vast extent of the territory of 
the United States and how it has grown to its present 
size. At the birth of the Nation there were only 
thirteen States and these all bordered on the Atlantic 
Ocean. Even before the close of the Revolution the 
people of the seaboard country had pushed inland 
hundreds of miles, had settled the Mohawk valley in 
New York and had sailed down the Allegheny and the 
Ohio, forming settlements on the banks of both. A 
few daring spirits had penetrated to the "dark and 
bloody ground," a name given Kentucky because of 
the many Indian massacres which took place there. 

After the war emigration flowed steadily west- 
ward. The hardy New Englanders were glad to 
exchange their rocky hillsides for the rich soil of, 
Western New York and Northern Ohio ; farther south 
they pushed into and through Pennsylvania to the 
Southern Ohio country, while the rugged moun- 
taineers of Virginia and the Carolinas crowded along 
the Wilderness Road into the blue-grass regions of 
Kentucky and the fertile valleys of Tennessee. This 
westward movement has continued until the original 
thirteen States have become forty-six and form an 
unbroken chain across the continent from the Atlantic 
to the Pacific. 

The States are very unequal in size ; Rhode Island 
and Delaware are very small while Texas and Cali- 
fornia are immense. The area of Texas would con- 
tain that of Great Britain and Ireland, Denmark, 
Holland and Belgium. France is hardly equal in 



LESSONS IN HISTORY 53 

size to New England, New York and Ohio, while the 
countries of Germany, Austria, Italy, Switzerland, 
Spain and Portugal combined only equal the area of 
the States east of the Mississippi River. Only a trip 
across the continent by one of the transcontinental 
railway lines can give one an idea of the extent of 
the country which supports millions of families in 
comfort. 

Geographers for convenience' sake have separated 
the States into certain groups, thus enabling us to 
refer more easily to the different sections. The fol- 
lowing are the divisions generally recognized at the 
present time: 

1. The New England States : Maine, New Hamp- 
shire, Vermont, Massachusetts, Connecticut, Rhode 
Island. 

2. The Central Atlantic States : New York, Penn- 
sylvania, New Jersey, Maryland, Delaware, Virginia, 
West Virginia. The District of Columbia, in which 
the city of Washington is situated, is included in 
this division. 

3. The North Central States: Ohio, Michigan, 
Indiana, Illinois, Kentucky, Tennessee, Missouri, 
Iowa, Kansas, Nebraska, Wisconsin, Minnesota, 
South and North Dakota. 

4. The Plateau or Rocky Mountain States: 
Colorado, Utah, Nevada, Wyoming, Idaho, Montana. 

5. The Pacific Coast States : California, Oregon, 
Washington. 

6. The Southern States : North and South Caro- 
lina, Georgia, Florida, Alabama, Mississippi, Louis- 
iana, Arkansas, Oklahoma, Texas. 



54 READER FOR COMING AMERICANS 

Explanations 

Observe the manner of abbreviations of the names of 
States: N.Y. — New York, etc. When States have the 
same initial letter the first and last letters are taken, as 
Me. — Maine; or the first syllable, as Minn. — Minnesota. 

Questions 

1. What did the people of the Atlantic States begin 
to do as they increased in number? 

2. What fine country lay west of New York State? 

3. What splendid country south of the Ohio River ? 

4. What other name was given it, and why? 

5. What can you tell about the size of the different 
States ? 

6. Name two of the smaller ones; two of the larger 
ones. 

7. What State do you live in? 

8. Into how many groups have geographers divided 
the States? 

9. Name one or more States in each of these groups. 

Synonyms 

Area — surface Region — section 

Daring — brave Rugged — robust, sturdy 

Exchange — swap, give Spirits — persons 

one for the other Transcontinental — 
Immense — very big across continent 

Massacre — murder Trip — j ourney 

Penetrated — pushed in Vast — large 
Recognized — known 

Words Like in Sound 
Distinguish between the following words: 
Known — past participle of know; noun — a part of 
speech 

Rise — to go up; rice — a cereal 
Soon — adverb; swoon — to faint 
Which — pronoun; witch — a sorceress 



LESSONS IN HISTORY 55 

Observe the formation of the words: 
Westward, northward, eastward, southward, down- 
ward, upward, etc. 

Grammar — Correct Substitutes 

The pronoun must agree with the noun in number, 
person and gender: Mrs. Doyle, together with her 
sister, came to town. The boys rowed their boat up the 
river. 

If the gender of the noun is not known the pronoun 
it is used: The child broke its arm. This is the explan- 
ation of "Who is it?" 

"He is as tall as me" is wrong — say as I; "he suffers 
more than me" is wrong — say than I; "no one is so 
blessed as him" is wrong — say as he. Conjunctions do 
not govern the objective case. 

Who, whose and whom refer to rational beings ; which 
refers to irrational beings and to things ; that refers to 
nouns of any kind: The man who lives; the horse which 
ran ; the house that Jack built ; the angel that came. 

What is often used for that which: It desires what 
it has not. 

Either and neither refer to one of two objects: Both 
are guilty, neither will be spared. 

The other means the second of two; another, one of 
any number above two: You take one, I, the other; 
"another yet — a seventh." 

Each refers to individuals in a group : To each accord- 
ing to his works. 

Every refers to all in the group viewed collectively: 
England expects every man to do his duty. 

Each other refers to one of two persons : Husband and 
wife love each other. 

One another refers to more than two: Men should love 
one another. 

Correct the following: 

It is not for such as us to complain; he is no better 
than her; the horse who was shot; there are three causes 



56 READER FOR COMING AMERICANS 

for crime neither of which, etc.; they are judged every 
man according to their works; a hundred men in arms 
encouraged each other. 



XIII. THE WARS OF NORTH AMERICA 

The two great wars which have had most impor- 
tant influence upon the development of North 
America are the War of the Revolution, through 
which the Republic came into existence, and the 
Civil War, which preserved the integrity of the 
United States as a nation. In only the first of these 
was Canada involved. 

The Revolutionary War was caused by the attempt 
of Great Britain to take money from the colonies 
without their consent. The British government was 
heavily burdened by war debts and the English 
Parliament determined to make the colonies pay a 
part of this debt by imposing duties upon certain 
commodities used by the colonists. The King and 
his ministers did not consult the colonists and the 
latter had no one to represent them in Parliament. 
When the taxes were imposed the colonists protested, 
holding that taxation without representation violated 
a fundamental principle in Anglo-Saxon ideas of 
government. The King insisted upon the royal pre- 
rogative and held stoutly to his policy. The result 
was the war for independence which began in 1775 
and lasted for seven long years. Hostilities extended 
from Canada on the north to Georgia in the south, 
the storm-center shifting from time to time from one 
section to another. The first outbreak occurred near 






LESSONS IN HISTORY 57 

Boston in Massachusetts, and the war practically 
ended with the capture of Lord Cornwallis and his 
army at Yorktown, Virginia. Peace negotiations 
followed and in 1783 Great Britain acknowledged the 
independence of the United States. 

In 1812, the United States declared war against 
Great Britain because that country while at war 
with France insisted upon the right to search Ameri- 
can ships. This war lasted two years. It was quite 
largely a naval war, although there was more or 
less fighting along the Canadian frontier, where two 
attempted invasions failed. The British attacked 
Washington and burned several of the public build- 
ings but failed in an attack on Baltimore ; they also 
made an attempt against New Orleans where they 
were defeated with heavy loss. While the war was 
uncalled for, the right of search was never again in- 
sisted upon by Great Britain and the American 
States were brought more closely together by the 
conflict. 

The war with Mexico was brought on by a dispute 
over the boundary between Mexico and Texas, the 
latter State having gained its independence and been 
annexed to this country. Opinion was greatly 
divided with reference to this war and it has been 
generally considered as an unjust assertion of rights 
by a strong nation against a weak one. The terri- 
tory acquired as a result of the war, for which the 
United States paid $15,000,000, was greatly bene- 
fited by the change. 

The Civil War of 1861-65 was fought to preserve 
the integrity of the Nation. For many years there 



58 READER FOR COMING AMERICANS 

were disputes between the North and the South with 
reference to the extension of territory where slave 
labor was used. These disputes divided the country 
and Congress was the scene of many acrimonious 
debates and many efforts at peace by compromises. 
When the North, however, asserted its strength by 
the election of President Lincoln, the Southern States 
attempted to secede from the Union and set up a 
government of their own. The President refused to 
recognize the right of the States to secede and a four 
years' war followed, unexampled in the expenditure 
of life and money. The Union was preserved and, 
under the institutions of free labor, both North and 
South have achieved phenomenal success in industrial 
development. 

In 1897 the people of Cuba rose in rebellion 
against Spanish misrule. The Americans naturally 
sympathized strongly with the Cubans. In 1898 the 
United States' battleship "Maine" was blown up in 
the harbor of Havana. Suspicion fell upon the 
Spanish government and public opinion demanded 
intervention of this government on behalf of the revo- 
lutionists. After six months of war, peace was de- 
clared and the independence of Cuba acknowledged. 
As a result of the conflict the United States came into 
possession of the Philippine Islands and Porto Rico. 

Questions 

1. Name the two great wars told about in the 
lesson. 

2. What resulted from the first of these? 

3. Tell about the conditions that led to the war. 

4. Where did the war begin? 



LESSONS IN HISTORY 59 

5. What event practically ended the war? 

6. What caused the second war with Great Britain ? 

7. Name some of the events of the war. 

8. Was the war with Mexico generally popular in 
this country? 

9. Mention some of the territory acquired from 
Mexico. 

10. What was the amount paid by this government? 

11. For what was the Civil War fought? 

12. Describe events leading to it. 

13. How was America involved in war with Spain? 

14. What single event led to the declaration of war? 

15. What territory came into possession of the United 
States as a result of this war? 

Synonyms 

Achieved — gained Imposing — placing 

Acrimonious — sharp, bit- Integrity — wholeness 

ter Involved — mixed up 

Burdened — loaded Prerogative — vested 
Commodities — articles of right 

value Preserved — kept 

Duties — taxes Protested — objected 

Fundamental — founda- Secede — separate 

tion, bottom Violated — broken 

Words Like in Sound 

Birth — coming into life; berth — a sleeping place 
Due — matured ; dew — moisture 
Peace — tranquillity ; piece — part. 

Right — correct; rite — a form; write — to inscribe, to 
trace 

Rose — did rise; rose — a flower 
Throe — agony; throw — fling, cast out 

Grammar — C omparison 

Adjectives usually stand before the noun they qualify. 
Averse, afraid, conformable, coeval, coequal, commen- 



60 READER FOR COMING AMERICANS 

surate, follow the noun for the reason that a qualifying 
phrase depends ujDon them: The son, afraid of the 
snake, ran. 

The comparative degree is used when two objects are 
compared: John is taller than James. 

The superlative, when more than two objects are com- 
pared: John is the tallest of the group. 

Else, other, rather, otherwise imply comparison and 
must have than after them: Jupiter is nothing else than 
an imaginary god. 

When numeral adjectives qualify nouns the plural 
sign is often omitted in the noun: A thousand horse; 
a hundred cannon. 

"The four first" means that the speaker has in mind 
four sets of objects and he refers to the first of each 
series. 

"The first four" means that the speaker has one 
object in mind and refers to the first, second, third and 
fourth of the series. 

Correct the following: "In the present misery inde- 
scribable of the laboring classes"; of the two men Jones 
is the tallest; the stronger of the dozen men is Smith; 
Robinson went rather to trade and not to college; the 
house is none other but the one in which we lived. 



XIV. OLD HICKORY AND NEW ORLEANS 

During the closing days of 1814, 10,000 British 
troops, veterans from European campaigns, gathered 
below New Orleans with the purpose of capturing the 
place. General Andrew Jackson, known as "Old 
Hickory," had been placed in charge of the city and 
its untrained militiamen, but on the very day that the 
British vanguard appeared his tested backwoods rifle- 



LESSONS IN HISTORY 61 

men from Tennessee and Kentucky marched into the 
city with their coon skin caps and with their long 
guns on their shoulders. To gain time Jackson 
delivered a fierce night attack on the British camp, 
and every able-bodied man was put to work with pick 
and shovel, throwing up a line of entrenchments 
between the river and the swamp, five miles below the 
city. A few days later the British attempted to 
destroy the earthworks with their artillery, in which 
they were greatly superior to the Americans, but 
their efforts failed. 

The final battle was fought on Sunday morning, 
January 8, 1815. During the night the tread of 
moving regiments and the rumbling of artillery 
betrayed the intended attack and soon after midnight 
the American general warned his officers, "The 
enemy will soon be upon us." Every man hurried to 
his post. The stalwart backwoodsmen leaned on 
their long rifles and peered out into the foggy morn- 
ing towards the enemy's camp. As the fog lifted 
the sound of bugles was heard and the long lines 
of red-coated grenadiers and kilted Highlanders 
appeared moving steadily forward. Nearer and 
still nearer they came. From the American breast- 
works the great guns opened, but not a rifle 
cracked. The assaulting columns broke into a 
doublequick and were nearing the American lines. 
Suddenly a sheet of flame burst from the breastworks 
and the advancing ranks faltered, stopped, broke 
and fled. Another splendid regiment advanced but 
met a like reception and the ranks again fell back. 
The British general-in-chief in person led the third 



62 READER FOR COMING AMERICANS 

assault and the columns advanced with brave deter- 
mination. But nothing could withstand the death- 
dealing volleys of the backwoods marksmen and 
again the proud lines gave way. The bright uni- 
forms of the British officers were easy targets for the 
sharpshooters and one after another the three 
generals in command fell before their unerring aim. 
The battle lasted less than a half hour; the British 
lost 2,500, the Americans but 21. This was the last 
battle of the war ; in fact peace had already been de- 
clared (Treaty of Ghent, December 24, 1814) before 
this deadly conflict took place, but the news did not 
reach New Orleans until after the battle. 

Explanations 

Highlanders: Men from the Highlands of Scotland 
forming a part of the British army and wearing a kind 
of short plaid petticoat, reaching from the waist to the 
knees. These kilts are still worn by men in the Scotch 
Highlands and by boys in the Lowlands. 

Questions 

1. With what nation was the United States at war 
in 1812-15? 

2. What city in the south was to be attacked? 

3. What general was in command of the city? 

4. What kind of soldiers did the British have? 

5. What kind defended the city? 

6. What did the American general do to gain time? 

7. What work did he have to do to aid in the 
defense ? 

8. Did the British attempt to destroy the defenses 
and did they succeed? 

9. When was the final battle fought? 



LESSONS IN HISTORY 63 

10. Describe the assault. 

11. How long did the battle last? 

12. What were the losses on the two sides? 

13. What important fact was made known after the 
battle was fought? 

Synonyms 



Campaign — military op- 
erations 
Falter — waver, hesitate 
Flee — run 

Grenadiers — tall soldiers 
Highlanders — mountain- 


Stalwart — strong 
Swamp — low wet ground 
Target — mark 
Tested — tried 
Uniform — soldier's dress 
Vanguard — head of the 


eers 
Kilt — short skirt 
Peering — looking 


army 
Veteran — experienced 
troops 



Words Like in Sound 

Post (both noun and verb): post: a large stake — a 
hitching post; post: to place — to post a notice 

Sheet — a thin broad article or surface — compare a 
sheet of paper, a sheet of tin, the sheet on the bed, a 
sheet of water 

Yard — three feet; yard — an enclosure 

Grammar — Verbal Forms 

Singular nouns connected by neither-nor, either-or are 
followed by the verb in the singular : No voice nor sound 
was heard; either William or George was present. If 
the nouns differ in person, the verb agrees with the 
nearest: neither you nor I am right; either you or he is 
mistaken. 

To generally accompanies the infinitive, but after bid, 
dare, feel, hear, let, make and see, and generally after 
help, need and please it is omitted: I bid thee go. 



64 READER FOR COMING AMERICANS 

The verb to be takes the same case after it as before it : 
It is 7. 

The verb to teach has two objects following it: Teach 
me thy laws. The one is the person, the other the thing 
taught. Verbs signifying making, appointing, creating, 
etc., are followed by two objects. 

We change a verb from the active to the passive: 

1. When we want to direct special attention to the 
action. 

2. When we do not know the actor. 

3. When we want to conceal the actor. 

Correct the following: Every limb and feature were 
marred; no part of the house or the barn were destroyed; 
either the husband or the wife are in the wrong; neither 
master nor servant were happy; either Johnson or I is 
wrong; the king, surrounded by his servants, were taken 
prisoner; my intellect and not my heart consent; many 
a man among the spectators come to grief; let every one 
in the room please themselves. 



XV. THE PRESERVER OF THE UNION 

(1809-1865) 

Abraham Lincoln was born in Kentucky, February 
12, 1809, of humble parents, and his boyhood was 
spent in a frontiersman's home. He attended school 
for less than a year and grew to manhood knowing 
little more than how to "read, write and cipher to the 
rule of three." He possessed an active mind and 
was fond of books. After the day's work he would 
lie for hours on the cabin floor to read by the light of 
the open fire the few volumes within his reach. A trip 






LESSONS IN HISTORY 65 

down the Mississippi River on a flatboat and the 
sight of the slave market in New Orleans made an im- 
pression that largely molded his after life. He 
studied law, entered politics and became a logical, 
forceful and popular speaker of great originality. 
He was elected to the Illinois legislature. He prac- 
ticed law in Springfield, Illinois, and his clear insight 
into politics soon won him first rank in the State. 
He was honored by his party by being chosen their 
representative in the United States Congress. 

In 1860 the issues in connection with the slavery 
question were stirring the nation ; Lincoln was nomi- 
nated for the Presidency by the Republican party 
and elected by the majority of the people as a pro- 
test against the extension of slave territory. He had 
scarcely taken his seat in the White House before 
Fort Sumter in Charleston harbor was fired upon by 
South Carolina troops and the four years' conflict 
of the Civil War began. Lincoln, by his wisdom, his 
honesty of purpose, his faith in God and in the 
American people, led the Union safely through the 
storm of fratricidal war, and just as peace had been 
gained through costly victories he was shot down by 
the hand of a fanatical and misguided actor. 

Lincoln was a great-hearted, God-fearing man. 
He bore the griefs of the nation and died a true 
martyr to the cause of freedom. At this day, after 
the smoke of battle has cleared and human prejudices 
have died out, the name of Lincoln is revered through 
our whole land — South as well as North — and he is 
known and honored in every civilized land the world 



66 READER FOR COMING AMERICANS 
Questions 

1. Of what State was Lincoln a native and to what 
class of people did his parents belong? 

2. Tell how he got his early education. 

3. What journey did he take when he was a young 
man and what did he see? 

4. In what way was this a preparation for Lincoln's 
great life-work ? 

5. What were some of the steps by which Lincoln 
came into public notice? 

6. By what political party was he nominated for 
President? 

7. What happened in South Carolina soon after 
Lincoln became President? What followed? 

8. What qualities of mind and heart made Lincoln 
a good and safe leader? 

9. What is the present opinion of Lincoln? 

10. Did you hear of Lincoln before you came to 
America ? 

Synonyms 

Cabin — log house Logical — sound and clear 

Fanatical — half crazy Martyr — one dying for 

Forceful — strong Nominated — -named 

Fratricidal ■ — brother- Popular — jgenerally liked 

killing Revered — reverenced 

Humble — lowly Slave — bondman 
Impression — effect 

Words Like in Sound 

Arms — implements of war ; arms — parts of the body 
Not — adverb; knot — a bond 

Grammar— Time in Action 

An action in the past may have three forms: 

1. The simple past, as: John left yesterday. 

2. When the action is in the past, but the period of 



LESSONS IN HISTORY 67 

time comes up to the present and includes it, then we 
have the form: John has left the city today. 

3. When the action referred to is complete before or 
at some definite past time, then we say: John had left 
the city before his brother arrived. 

The first is called the past; the second the present 
perfect; and the third the past perfect. 

To form the various tenses and moods of the verb, 
helping or auxiliary verbs are used; these are: be, can, 
could, do, did, have, had, may, might, must, should, shall, 
will and would. 

Can, could, may, might, must, should are used to 
express power, necessity and permission: Can you do it? 
I can; Must you go ? Yes, I must go ; May I go ? Yes, 
you may go. 

Will and shall express the future. Will is used when 
the actor expresses resolve, determination: I will go — 
my determination is to go. I shall go — simple futurity. 
In the second and third persons we say : You or he shall 
go — my mind is set on his going; you or he will go — 
simple futurity, for the going rests with the persons of 
whom we speak. "I will drown and no one shall help 
me," shouted a man who accidentally fell into the water. 
The phrase well illustrates the wrong use of will and 
shall. 

The verbal form in ing and the auxiliary be form a 
progressive expression which represents unfinished action :" 
I am writing (now) — present; I was writing (at one 
o'clock) — past; I shall be writing (at one o'clock to- 
morrow) — future. 

In the irregular verbs we have a different form in the 
compound tenses from that used in the past tense: I 
gave; I have given. It is incorrect to say: I have gave. 
The form given is called the past participle of the verb 
give, and it is important to use the past form in the past 
tense and the past participle in the compound tenses. 

Let the student find the irregular verbs in Lesson XV. 
and give the principal parts of each. 



68 READER FOR COMING AMERICANS 

XVI. GENERAL U. S. GRANT 

(1822-1885) 

The Union general who commanded the United 
States armies during the closing year of the Civil 
War and whose brilliant campaign won the decisive 
victories that ended the Rebellion was Ulysses S. 
Grant. He was born in Ohio, 1822, and was de- 
scended through both father and mother from early 
New Engand families. His ancestors fought in both 
the French-Indian and Revolutionary wars. His 
father was a farmer-tanner. He procured for his 
son an appointment to West Point from which young 
Grant graduated in 1843. His record at the school 
was not a brilliant one. He served in the Mexican 
War, took part in nearly every engagement and was 
twice promoted for bravery. In 1854 he resigned 
from the army and entered business, in which he was 
not successful. At the breaking out of the Civil War 
he had difficulty in obtaining a position under the 
government and entered the war as colonel of a regi- 
ment of Illinois Volunteers. Later he was made 
brigadier-general of volunteers and rose rapidly, his 
capture in quick succession of Forts Henry and 
Donaldson on the Tennessee River being the first 
substantial success of the war. His capture of Vicks- 
burg with its garrison of 30,000, which opened the 
Mississippi and cut the Confederacy in two, followed 
by the brilliant operations about Chattanooga, 
rendered Grant the most conspicuous figure in the 
war and led to his being created lieutenant-general 



LESSONS IN HISTORY 69 

and made commander-in-chief of the national forces. 
He took personal command of the armies in the East 
and began and fought that series of great and bloody 
battles that resulted in the fall of Richmond, the 
capture of Lee and Ins army and the downfall of the 
Rebellion. 

General Grant was one of the people. He was a 
taciturn man and slow to express an opinion. He 
was not fond of writing and sometimes failed to 
report, to the discomfort of his superiors. He occa- 
sionally coined sentences that were apt, and which 
have passed into history. His greatest character- 
istic was his indomitable courage and grit. In defeat 
and discouragement he never relinquished his pur- 
pose to push on the war to a successful issue. He 
kept his forces in constant action and this brought 
the war to an end. 

In 1868, the Republican party nominated General 
Grant for the Presidency of the United States and 
he was elected. He was absolutely honest and be- 
lieved that the men whom he selected as friends and 
advisers were the same. He was a sterling patriot 
and rendered great service to his country. He was 
strenuously opposed to wasteful expenditure on the 
part of the government and exercised his veto power 
to defeat bills for appropriation of money which he 
thought extravagant. He tried to give the people 
non-partisan civil service and induced Congress to 
pass a civil service reform bill in 1871. 

General Grant was chosen President for the 
second term in 1872. It was during this term that 
the so-called Alabama Claims were settled by an 



70 READER FOR COMING AMERICANS 

international court of arbitration — Great Britain 
was charged with dereliction of the neutral laws by 
permitting vessels to be built and equipped in British 
waters to prey upon American merchant ships. 
General Grant died in 1885 and lies buried under a 
marble mausoleum on the banks of the Hudson in 
New York City. 

Questions 

1. Who commanded the Union armies during the 
closing year of the Civil War? 

2. In what State and in what year was he born ? 

3. What can you tell about his ancestry? 

4. Where was Grant educated? 

5. Tell about his services in the Mexican War. 

6. Did he remain in the army ? 

7. When the Civil War broke out did the govern- 
ment have a place for him ? 

8. In what capacity did he enter the war? 

9. After being made a brigadier-general what cam- 
paign did he conduct in Tennessee? 

10. What city on the Mississippi River surrendered 
to him and why was it an important capture? 

11. To what position did the government call him 
after his brilliant Chattanooga campaign? 

12. What followed his being placed in command of 
the eastern armies? 

13. Mention some of Grant's characteristics, habits 
and ways. 

14. To what high office was he twice elected by the 
people ? 

15. How long ago did he die? 

16. Where is he buried? 

Synonyms 

Absolutely — entirely Coined — made, originated 

Brigadier-general — bri- Colonel — regimental 

gade commander commander 



LESSONS IN HISTORY 



71 



Conspicuous — -prominent 
Decisive — conclusive 
Dereliction — neglect 
Extravagant — wasteful 
Indomitable — invincible 
Mausoleum — tomb 
Obtaining — getting 
Previous — earlier 



Procured — obtained 
Resigned — gave up 
Sterling — pure 
Strenuously — strongly- 
Substantial — real 
Taciturn — silent 
Tanner — dresser of hidt 



Words Like in Sound 

Bill — account; bill — a beak; bill — bank note; bill — a 
proposed law 

Slow — not quick; slough — quagmire, bog; sloe — wild 
plum 

Grammar — Right Relation 

Prepositions should not occupy the last place in the 
sentence: He drew the sword which he killed her with. 

The phrase from thence — from that place. The from 
is generally considered superfluous and thence and whence 
only are used. Prepositions are generally attached to 
these adverbs: wherein, whereof, thereof, etc. 

Prepositions often determine the meaning of the verb, 
hence it is important to use the right preposition after 
the verb. Notice the following: 



Correspond with (a per- 
son) 
Correspond to (a thing) 
Adapted to (by plan) 
Adapted for (by nature) 
Agree to (a thing) 
Agree with (a person) 
Convenient to (a person) 
Convenient for (a pur- 
pose) 
Part from (a person) 
Part with (a thing) 



Taste of (food) 
Taste for (art) 
Confide in (to trust in) 
Confide to (to intrust to) 
Confer on (to give to) 
Confer with (consult) 
Differ from (in likeness) 
Differ with (in opinion) 
Reconcile to (a person) 
Reconcile with (a state- 
ment) 



72 READER FOR COMING AMERICANS 

Avoid the too frequent use of conjunctions. 

Correct the following: I could not though I wished 
to ; I agree with his statement ; the house is convenient 
for him; it is not convenient to me to go; I differ from 
his judgment; it is began; it is stole; it is wove; he is a 
honest man; it is a easy thing; the eldest of the two 
sons; his task is near done; everybody were disposed to 
help him; this book is different to that; I have to go to 
the dentist's; shall you promise to come? say when I 
would come ; shall you write after you arrive ? 



XVII. DEVOTION TO THE UNION 

The attempt to hoist two flags in this country 
failed. This was due to men who put their country 
first and self-interest second. One of these men was 
Charles Russell Lowell, a descendant of one of the 
best families of New England, a scholar of rare 
ability and a leader among men. After graduation 
he entered the iron business, but when his country 
wanted men, he left his business and sacrificed his life 
in the cause. He received his first commission as 
captain of infantry, but his ability on the field, his 
bravery and self-possession in action, soon brought 
him advancement. His end came in the famous battle 
of Cedar Creek, when a disastrous retreat was turned 
into victory by the personality and courage of 
General Sheridan. Lowell had saved one wing of 
the surprised army, holding his position against re- 
peated assaults. Several horses had been shot under 
him, and about noon he was struck in the chest and 
painfully but not mortally hurt. When the order 



LESSONS IN HISTORY 73 

came to advance, a comrade helped Lowell to the 
saddle and his brigade was the first ready. Leading 
the charge he dashed forward, but when the battle 
raged hottest he was struck and fatally wounded, 
dying soon after in a village house to which friends 
had carried him. 

Thousands of noble lives were thus sacrificed in 
defense of the Union. They were men of courage 
and patriotic ardor, who gave the best that was in 
them to their country. The lesson Lowell's devotion 
teaches is that men who by fortune and education 
have inherited most are the ones who owe most to 
their country. 

Questions 

1. What do you know about the family of Charles 
Russell Lowell? 

2. What kind of a man was he? 

3. Why did he leave his business and go voluntarily 
into the war? 

4. What was his character as a soldier? 

5. Tell something about the battle in which he was 
killed. 

6. What lesson are we taught by Lowell's life and 
death? 

Synonyms 

Ability — power, skill Hoist — raise 

Ardor — zeal Inherited — received by 

Brigade — division of an birth 

army Rare — uncommon 

Comrade — companion Sacrifice — to give up 



74 READER FOR COMING AMERICANS 
Words Like in Sound 

Chest — upper part of the body below the neck; chest — 
a wooden box or trunk 

Rare — unusual; rare — raw 

Grammar — Miscellaneous 

Avoid the use of them who and they who: We should 
regard them who are wise; read those persons. 

The title of a book is singular: "The Annals of New 
York" are an important book; read is. 

When more than one auxiliary is used be sure that 
each has the proper accompaniment: The house has, is, 
or shall be occupied; read, has been, is being. 

Observe the verbs lie (to rest or repose) and lay (to 
put down something). The principal parts are: 





Present 


Past 


Past Participle 


Transitive verb 


lay 


laid 


laid 


Intransitive verb 


lie 


lay 


lain 



Confusion in the use of the verbs arises from the fact 
that the past of the one is the same as the present of the 
other: The sick man lies in bed; the sick man lay in bed; 
the sick man has lain in bed ; I lay the book on the table ; 
I laid the book on the table; I have laid the book on the 
table. 

Sit — he sits in the chair. 

Set — Mother sets the table; the sun is setting. 

Stop — ceases to move. 

Stays — remains in one place. 

Teach — imparting instruction. 

Learn — absorbing knowledge. 

Correct the following: he don't; I ain't going; every 
one of the boys brought their books; my son is to be 
married to I don't know who; he is better behaved than 
me; the people was astonished; the man who I saw; will 



LESSONS IN HISTORY 75 

you learn me my lesson? he do think you are wrong; the 
boys' coat is too large ; the girl's school is well attended ; 
he told him and I ; men should be polite to each other ; 
in his face discontent and sorrow manifested itself; you 
have chose the worser; will I see you tomorrow? can I 
go to the garden? the men have, are and shall be paid 
high wages; he laid abed till nine; lay down and rest; 
after laying awhile in this position he rose up; the boat 
stays in Bridgeport; the man stops at the Walton; the 
garment was neatly sewn; I writ my name; one club has 
commenced last Friday; polygamy never has and never 
can be a vice of the great body of people. 



XVIII. DYING FOR THE FLAG 

During the Civil War both North and South gave 
exhibitions of great valor. This bravery was often 
witnessed in defense of the flag, which frequently 
trailed in the blood of its bearer. The Union soldiers, 
in the battle of Fredericksburg, were climbing the 
slope leading to the Confederate position. They 
were repulsed, and before they could reach shelter 
the flag-bearer was shot and the flag fell in the open. 
A captain rushed to rescue it and was instantly shot. 
Another captain followed his example and he also 
paid the penalty, falling on his comrade. Several 
private soldiers attempted to rescue the ensign, but 
each met a like fate. At last an officer, dropping to 
the ground, crawled to the place, rescued the stained 
banner and bore it back to the place of safety. 

Equal bravery was shown by Southern soldiers. 
At Gaines' Mill the Confederate troops advanced in 



76 READER FOR COMING AMERICANS 

order to take a strong position. The fire of the 
Union forces was deadly, and the flag-bearer of the 
advancing troops was shot down. Instantly the 
flag was taken up by another who, in turn, was shot 
down ; but no sooner was the flag down than another 
raised it aloft, and paid the price — his life — as did 
his compatriots. Another followed — he also fell and 
so did the fifth, all falling near each other. Thus 
has the flag been honored by brave soldiers, and, in 
every country, men have freely given their lives in 
defense of the flag they loved. 

Questions 

1. What does the flag of a country represent? 

2. Describe the rescue of the flag at Fredericksburg. 

3. Tell of similar loyalty to a flag at Gaines' Mill. 

4. Were not all of these soldiers really of one 
country ? 

5. Why should a foreign-born person love the 
American flag? 

6. Should we not be ashamed of doing anything that 
would dishonor the flag of our country? 

Synonyms 

Equal — like, the same Penalty — price 

Exhibition — a showing Repulsed — driven back 

Frequently — often Valor — courage 
Instantly — at once 

Words Like in Sound 

Back — an adverb; back — a part of the body 
Bore — past of bear; boar — a wild hog 
Last — the hindmost; last — a shoe form 

Distinguish between both and booth; rise and raise 



LESSONS IN HISTORY 77 

Grammar — Miscellaneous 

In the same sentence the past tense goes with the past 
tense; the present goes with the present or the future: 
no writer would write a book unless he thinks it will be 
read. Read, thought it would, etc. 

The infinitive of the verb expresses what is either 
future or contemporary at the same time indicated by 
the principal verb: I found him better than I expected 
to have found him. Read, to find, etc. 

Observe: Affect — to influence 

Effect — to bring about 

Get — to obtain, come into possession of 

Have — to own, to possess 

Distinguish between: smart and clever; mad and 
angry; dull, stupid and dumb; fly and flee; love and 
like ; sly, cunning and skilful ; think and guess ; bred and 
reared; expect and suspect; rise and raise. 

Guard against, worser, lesser, chiefest, extremest, 
more perpendicular, four square. 

Two negatives in English make a positive: I will not 
go I don't think — I will go I think. 

Correct the following: Him and me went to New 
York; who of the boys has cut the tree? divide the apple 
among Thomas and I ; them that seek wisdom will find 
it; who is this for? I have sown all my oats and it is 
growing nice; who will I direct the parcel to? we sorrow 
not as them that have no hope; whom do men say that 
I am? he that doubts I speak not to; it cannot be me you 
mean ; it won't rain I don't think so ; does he not behave 
well and keeps his work? dancing is more pleasant than 
to walk or ride ; he will never do so no more ; the dew 
are falling, it is growing chill, our excursion was over, 
we turned for home; he throwed the ball; he seed him; 
he knowed better; we be all of us from the country; 
he was drowned; the goods was shipt yesterday; take 
either of the five; Jack and Jim fighted one another; 
neither of these four hats is mine; each one of the dozen 
is injured. 



78 READER FOR COMING AMERICANS 
XIX. POPULATION 

The population of North America is about 100,- 
000,000, ninety per cent of the number being of 
European descent. The other ten per cent are Red 
Men, Africans and Asiatics. 

When the English conquered Spain on the seas, 
and wrested from France the Ohio valley and Canada, 
the Anglo-Saxon was in control of the destinies of 
North America. Other nations have freely emi- 
grated to the New World, but the government and 
institutions, the laws and the customs, the industrial 
and commercial life, have been molded and directed 
by men of Anglo-Saxon origin and ideas. 

The growth of population in North America has 
been phenomenal. At the time of the Revolutionary 
War there were no more than 3,000,000 persons in 
the country. Fifty years later the number had 
increased more than threefold, and at the opening 
of the twentieth century more than 80,000,000 of 
people lived in North America. 

This marvelous growth of population is largely 
due to the tide of immigration which has continu- 
ously flowed into this highly favored country for the 
last fifty years. Since the United States became 
an independent nation more than 26,000,000 immi- 
grants have landed in the country; and another 
2,000,000 have entered Canada. Thus, North 
America is the land of the immigrant, and fully one 
third of the population at any period during the last 
fifty years has been and is made up of persons of 
foreign parentage. 



LESSONS IN HISTORY 79 

This constantly inflowing human tide makes many 
cities cosmopolitan communities where representatives 
of every civilized country are found. In 1664, when 
the English took what is now New York City, it was 
a cosmopolitan community in which no less than 
twenty-five different languages were spoken. And 
since that time the great number of immigrants 
landing in the port of New York and remaining in 
the city has kept the population more foreign than 
native. This is its character today and it is destined 
to be such as long as immigration continues. 

America is the land of opportunity to the immi- 
grant, if only he comes with the resolution to do hard 
work, to observe the laws of the land, and to cooperate 
with all that is for the upbuilding of the Republic. 
Men of sound bodies and minds, of good moral char- 
acter, willing to work, are always welcomed in the 
land. Millions of men and women now in America 
get better wages for labor, have greater freedom in 
the pursuit of happiness, and many more material 
and educational advantages than they had in the old 
country. The land is by no means full. There is 
room for millions more, if means are devised to dis- 
tribute the immigrants into sections of the country 
where opportunities for settlement exist and where 
their services are most needed. 

Questions 

1. What is the present population of America? 

2. What proportion are of European descent? 

3. Name the two great Anglo-Saxon nations. 

4. What events gave the Anglo-Saxon control of 
North America? 



80 



READER FOR COMING AMERICANS 



5. How many people were there in this country at 
the close of the Revolutionary War? 

6. Tell how the wonderful increase in population 
has come about. 

7. How many immigrants have landed in the United 
States since it became a nation? 

8. Why do you call New York a cosmopolitan city? 

9. Ought all immigrants to try to learn the English 
language ? 

10. What three qualities in an immigrant will make 
him welcome in this country? 

11. Is it a good plan for immigrants to remain in the 
big seacoast towns? 



Synonyms 



Commercial — trading 
Conquered — subdued 
Continuously — constant- 

Cosmopolitan — world- 
wide 
Devised — thought out 
Industrial — working 



Marvelous — wonderful 
Material — valuable 
Opportunity — chance 
Phenomenal — unusual 
Remaining — staying 
Resolution — determina- 
tion 
Wrested — forced 



Words Like in Sound 

Distinguish between sound — a noise; sound — whole, 
not decayed; sound — a body of water 

Mind — mental power; mind — to take care 
Means — a plan and agency; means — wealth 

Grammar — Miscellaneous 

Avoid long words: "To spit" is better than "to expec- 
torate"; "to love" than "to cherish amorous affection"; 
"thief" than "kleptomaniac"; "oyster" than "succulent 
bivalve." 

Avoid such sentences as: "The night was brilliantly 
bright with the radiance of astral and lunar effulgence" 
which means, "The moon and stars shone brightly"; "he 



LESSONS IN HISTORY 81 

expired in indigent circumstances/' for, "he died poor" ; 
"his vituperation exacerbated the pharmaceutical chem- 
ist" for, "his abuse angered the druggist" ; "a contusion 
of the integuments beneath the orbit/' for, "a black eye." 
Place the qualifying words in the right place: 
Correct the following: The man dismissed his servant 
who had never before without inquiring done so unkind 
an act; it is a long time since I commanded him to have 
done it; I love bread and butter; he was bred in the 
South; we suspect the trip will be pleasant; they shall 
fly from the wrath to come; he was much effected by the 
news; they shall fly from the coming storm; I must get 
my lessons; I have got to do it; I have got a new mit; 
he divided his money between the three sons; I guess he 
is dishonest; he was so dumb that he could not learn to 
read; he was mad at the delay; the sculptor has a cun- 
ning hand; mankind resemble each other most in bar- 
barous countries; they spent the summer at the north in 
a small village; there is constant hostility between the 
trades unions; you may rely in what I say and confide 
on my honesty; I have seldom seen such a tall man; the 
letter was not as well written as I wished it to be; do 
like I did; they were once rich but now are poor; the 
entire monopoly of the whole trade; they turned back 
again to the same city from whence they came forth; 
the first discoverer of America; adversity both taught 
you to think and to reason ; I am surprised how you could 
do such a thing; I don't know as I shall go and I don't 
know but what I shall. 



XX. AMERICA AND THE WORLD 

At the beginning of the nineteenth century the 
French undertook to express the republican motto, 
"Liberty, Equality, Fraternity." But it remained 
for the United States to do this in the most emphatic, 



82 READER FOR COMING AMERICANS 

practical and permanent way which has been satis- 
factorily tested since the close of the Civil War. 

Equality has been the passion of Americans. The 
Old World distinctions are not found here. Every 
man, woman and child is equal before the law. Every 
person has equal opportunity to go and come any- 
where in the country without having his right to do 
so questioned. The day laborer has equal right with 
the highest in the land to enjoy the fruit of his labor ; 
the son of the wage-earner and the son of the capi- 
talist has each the opportunity to secure an educa- 
tion, for the doors of colleges and universities stand 
open alike to all. The workingmen of America have 
equal right with the employers of labor to organize 
for the protection of their rights, and every work- 
ingman is backed by the law of the land in his right 
to labor wherever he will and under whatever condi- 
tions he chooses. Every voter has an equal right to 
cast his ballot and to express his opinion in the press 
or in public speech on any topic. Each man has the 
same right to profess and propagate his particular 
religious belief, providing he obeys the laws of the 
land and respects the rights of other men. Never 
before in the history of the world has the principle 
of equality found as wide an application as in North 
America. 

The same is true of Liberty. It was the freedom 
given the sons of colonists and immigrants that 
developed the West and made possible a chain of 
States reaching from the Atlantic to the Pacific. 
Free discussion of public questions has been the secret 
of success in the solution of grave problems which 



LESSONS IN HISTORY 83 

confronted the people. There are 90,000,000 people 
living together in the United States and there is 
absolute freedom of trade between them, so that any- 
one can go where he will, and buy and sell without 
meeting any barriers to commerce, save those of just 
laws. It is the assurance given every man that he is 
free to develop the best that is in him which accounts 
for the number of inventors, statesmen and educators 
who have risen from humble origin in America. 
There are no laws or customs to check the son of the 
poor man if he have the capacity to succeed, and there 
are no prejudices to hold the quick and the able from 
reaping the fruits of their success. At a cost in men 
and money that surprised the world, the United 
States settled the question that free labor shall be the 
basis of our industrial development. In no country 
in the world has the rank and file of the population 
enjoyed such freedom as in America. 

The third — Fraternity — has been equally honored 
in America. We have no king or emperor, no aris- 
tocracy or caste. It is a government "of the people, 
by the people and for the people," and how often 
have the people cooperated to bring about results 
that were deemed impossible by philosophers and 
statesmen of older countries. They threw off the 
yoke of dependence and formed National and State 
governments ; twelve million men stood together in 
their determination to preserve the integrity of the 
Union, and when the sword was sheathed the spirit 
of Fraternity brought the two sections together in 
the common aim to make this nation the greatest of 
modern times. No cities in the world are as cosmo- 



84 READER FOR COMING AMERICANS 



politan as ours and none are more enterprising or 
prosperous, and this is possible because of the frater- 
nal spirit that dominates the great American heart 
in whose country representatives of all nations meet 
to work out the destinies of a free people. 

Questions 

1. What was the motto of the French Republic? 

2. Does the present government of the United 
States demonstrate very fully the principles of liberty, 
equality and fraternity? 

3. Does the United States Constitution insure liberty 
and equality of rights to all its citizens? 

4. Does the equality of rights mean in any sense 
equality of position or of property? 

5. May the son of the poor workingman become 
learned and rich? If this is so, tell how you know it. 

6. Which would you rather be, wise and good, or 
merely rich? 



Synonyms 



Absolute — entire, perfect 
Application — practical 

test 
Assurance — promise 
Basis — bottom, founda- 
tion 
Capitalist — moneyed man 
Confronted — came before 
Discussion — debate 
Distinctions — differences 
E mphatic — force f ul 



Express — state, utter 
Fraternity — brotherhood 
Passion — strong love 
Practical — workable 
Prejudice — hastily 

formed ideas 
P ropagate — spread 
Rank and file — common 

people 
Solution — settling 
Topic — sub j ect 



Words Like in Sound 

Cast — to throw; caste — social position 
Here — at this place; hear — to catch sound 
Rank — row; rank — rancid; rank — position 



LESSONS IN HISTORY 85 

Grammar — Miscellaneous 

Avoid the use of ambiguous words: the revolting 
Bulgarians; his presence was against him; the statement 
is not true (false or inaccurate). 

Secure the proper word: The anatomy of Bulgaria, 
for autonomy; the allegories of the Nile, for alligators; 
the subject is tattooed, for tabooed. 

Avoid superfluous words: hitherto and before now; I 
wrote a letter to him. 

When a noun is self-sufficient avoid an unnecessary- 
adjective: "the book" is better than "the written book"; 
"murder" than "a planned homicide." 

Avoid such phrases as: I am sure; I am convinced; 
it seems to me; as I think. 

Watch the following words: little and small used for 
slight and trifling; only for alone; doubt for fear; less 
for fewer; most ancient for oldest; all not for not all; 
can but for cannot but. 

After verbs of doubt, fear or denial that is preferable 
to but, but what, but that: I have no doubt but you can 
help me. Read that. 

Correct the following: This is none other but the 
gate of Paradise; wanted a young man to look after a 
pony of a religious turn of mind; a fried dish of oysters; 
the negroes are to appear at church only in boots ; there 
is a wonderful combination in his manner of elegance 
and ease; not only he found her employed, but pleased 
and tranquil also; I shall neither depend on you nor on 
him; I doubt that his partiality has carried him too far; 
he has lent to the people a quantity of books ; no man 
had less friends and more enemies; the rabid animal bit 
Mr. Robinson and several other dogs ; the thief illuded 
the police; this here is my seat; his two sisters both of 
them were well educated; mine is equally as good as 
yours. 



PART TWO 
INDUSTRIAL 



READINGS IN INDUSTRIES 
I. GENERAL RESOURCES 

The United States is highly favored with a coast 
line 18,000 miles in length. It has the same length 
of navigable rivers and another 1000 miles of water 
front along the shores of the Great Lakes. This 
gives excellent facilities for internal commerce, while 
numerous bays and harbors line the coasts. The 
temperature is favorable to the growth of an ener- 
getic people, while a plentiful rainfall and the warmth 
of summer make possible the growth of a great 
variety of vegetation. 

The fertility of the soil is remarkable. The coast 
regions of the Atlantic are abundantly supplied with 
rivers and are well forested; they are suited to the 
growth of wheat, corn, tobacco, cotton, etc. The 
mountain ranges, stretching from Newfoundland to 
Alabama, are the finest regions for the uses of man 
that the world affords. The lake region has an ex- 
ceedingly fertile soil, and an abundant rainfall; and 
in the South the land and climate are suited to the 
growth of sugar, cotton and rice. The great plains 
are given over mainly to cattle raising and the 
plateau region is rich in mineral wealth. The Pacific 
slope is of great fertility and well watered, and the 
climate makes it the garden spot of the United States. 

The forests cover about thirty-five per cent of the 
area of the country and are for the most part east 



90 READER FOR COMING AMERICANS 

of the Mississippi. In the Northern Atlantic States 
is found the white pine; in the Southern States the 
yellow pine, and in the Mississippi valley are found 
the oak, hickory, ash, etc. Wood is also found in 
the Rocky Mountains and on the Pacific Coast. 

Food fish abound in the waters of the seas and 
lakes. The mineral resources are abundant. There are 
335,000 square miles of coal-bearing strata widely 
distributed in the country, while supplies of iron ore 
also abound in many sections. Other metals are 
found in more or less abundance, so that the United 
States leads all countries in the production of coal, 
iron, copper, lead, gold and silver. It also leads in 
the quantity of such products as corn, wheat, lumber, 
meats, tobacco, cotton and petroleum. For these 
reasons we believe the United States a favored 
country and a good place for men to live. 

Words of Like Sound 

Ash — a tree, "The tub is made of white ash"; ash — 
left from burning, "The ash heap is in the back yard." 

Bay — a body of water, "The boat sails on the bay"; 
bay — a color, "Thomas bought a bay horse." 

Cent — a coin, "The newspaper costs one cent"; sent — 
did send, "I sent my son for some coal"; scent — an odor, 
"The blossoms have a sweet scent." 

Ore — a mineral, "Iron ore is taken from the earth" ; 
oar — to row with, "The man put the oar in the boat"; 
o'er — over, "The ship came o'er the sea." 

Pine — a tree, "The pine tree is tall and straight"; 
pine — to suffer, "It is sad to see the child pine away." 

Soil — earth, "A farmer tills the soil"; soil — to make 
dirty, "I fear Stanislaus will soil his new shoes." 



LESSONS IN INDUSTRIES 91 

II. COAL 

Coal is the principal source of heat, light and 
power. It is of vegetable origin, the growth having 
been deposited in swamps in heavily wooded areas, 
such as is represented today by the "Dismal Swamp" 
of Virginia. It assumes first the form of peat, then 
by gradual transition it passes into lignite, then into 
various grades of bituminous coal, and then through 
heat and pressure into anthracite. The change from 
peat to true coal has been gradual, and has taken 
possibly millions of years. 

Coal is produced in commercial quantities in fifteen 
States ; but Pennsylvania, Ohio, Illinois and West 
Virginia produce more than seventy per cent of the 
total tonnage. The United States leads the world 
in annual tonnage of coal produced. It is estimated 
that the coal fields of the United States contain 3000 
billion tons, of winch 1700 billions are anthracite or 
bituminous, and 1300 billions are lignite and low 
grade coals. Anthracite is found in Northeastern 
Pennsylvania, and differs from bituminous coal in 
the amount of volatile matter it contains. There are 
different kinds of bituminous coal. Some of it fuses 
together under heat and when the gases are burnt 
off, a residue of a porous character is left known 
as coke. These coals are known as caking or coking 
coals, and are the most valuable of the bituminous 
variety. The coke is used principally as a fuel in 
the manufacture of iron. Other coals are rich in 
gas and are chiefly used in the manufacture of the 
gas which lights our homes, cities and towns. Other 



92 READER FOR COMING AMERICANS 

bituminous coals are adapted for the use of boilers 
and are known as steam coals. One variety, com- 
paratively rare, is known as cannel coal, so called 
because of the candle-like flame with which it burns. 
The United States now produces annually between 
450 and 500 million tons of coal. Coal mining in 
America has gone on for about 100 years, and up 
to the present time the tonnage produced has doubled 
every ten years. If this rate of consumption con- 
tinues, the supply of high-grade coals will be ex- 
hausted in less than two centuries. The end of the 
supply of anthracite coal in Pennsylvania is now in 
sight. It is the duty of the Nation to conserve its 
coal supply, which is so essential to the industrial 
life of the country. 

Words of Like Sound 

Ball — a round object, "The earth is round like a ball"; 
bawl — to cry aloud, "The peddlers bawl their wares 
through the streets" ; ball — a dance, "Gretchen went to 
the ball with Hans." 

Bound- — border, "The woods bound our farm on the 
south"; bound — to leap, "The deer bound away over 
the prairies" ; bound — made fast, "They bound the crazy 
man with ropes." 

Clothes — dress, "Girls all like to wear good clothes"; 
close — shut, "Always close the door quietly"; close — 
near, "John and Mary like to sit close to each other." 

Green — a color, "The white house with green shut- 
ters" ; green — not dry, "Green wood does not burn well" ; 
green — a common, "The boys and girls dance on the 
village green." 

Low — not high, "The sheep jumped over the low 
wall"; low — bellow, "The cattle low as they come to be 



LESSONS IN INDUSTRIES 93 

milked" ; lo — behold, "Lo, in her mouth was an olive 
leaf." 

Pen — to write with, "I dip my pen in the ink" ; pen — 
an enclosure, "We shut the pigs in the pen." 



III. PETROLEUM 

Petroleum is an inflammable oily liquid mixture 
that exudes from the earth, oozes from crevices of 
rocks and floats on the surface of water. It is also 
called coal-oil, rock-oil, mineral-oil, and the Indians 
sold it for medical purposes as "Seneca oil." It has 
been known from time immemorial and the pagan 
perpetual fires were possibly of this origin. Geolo- 
gists believe that petroleum has been formed of 
decomposed organic matter, either vegetable or 
animal. It is found in commercial quantities in 
North America, Europe and Asia. The annual pro- 
duction of the world is more than 5,000,000,000 
gallons, half of which is produced in the United 
States. Russia' is the only country that competes 
with the United States in volume of production, hav- 
ing an annual output of 2,250,000,000 gallons. The 
remainder is supplied by Austria, Germany, Sumatra, 
Java, and Canada. 

Petroleum was known to exist in Pennsylvania 
from the first time Europeans settled there ; but its 
commercial importance began in 1859, when the first 
oil well was sunk near Titusville, Pa. Oil is being 
produced today in commercial quantities in several 
States, but Pennsylvania, Ohio and Indiana lead all 



94 READER FOR COMING AMERICANS 

others. Petroleum as it comes from the earth is crude 
oil. It is used in this state for steam raising and 
other purposes, but the major part is refined and 
yields gasolene, naphtha, benzine, kerosene, paraffin, 
etc. Besides these refined products a residuum ren- 
ders such by-products as tar, pitch, etc. Much the 
larger part of the oil is suitable for burning and is 
used in lamps in every part of the world. The ques- 
tion of transporting oil to market led to the con- 
struction of pipe lines, some of which are hundreds 
of miles in length. The plan is to lay a six-inch pipe 
as a main, then pumping stations are built along 
this line every thirty miles or so, which force the oil, 
when necessary, up grade. These pipes run from 
the oil fields of Pennsylvania to New York and 
Chicago. Some carry the crude product from the 
oil region to the refineries, others carry the refined 
product to distributing centers. 

Words of Like Sound 

Hay — mown grass, "Make hay while the sun shines"; 
hey — an exclamation, "Hey, John, where are you going?" 

Hair — nature's clothing, "I fear my hair is turning 
gray" ; hare — a small animal, "The hare has very long 
ears." 

Heard — did hear, "I just heard the shop-whistle"; 
herd — a number of animals, "A large herd of cattle 
passed this morning." 

Heel — a part of the foot, "I bruised my heel on 
stone"; heal — to cure, "salve would heal the bruise on 
your heel." 

Heart — an organ of the body, "The heart beats 
about seventy-two times a minute" ; hart — a male deer, 
"A hart bounded away through the woods." 



LESSONS IN INDUSTRIES 95 

Hire — to engage, "The boss wishes to hire Casimer 
for twenty dollars"; higher— comparative of high, "Casi- 
mer wants higher wages." 



IV. SALT 

Salt is a mineral product and is a very important 
article of food. It is one of the commonest natural 
substances and is found in sea water, in deep springs, 
and in the form of rock salt. It is obtained in com- 
mercial quantities in fifteen States and in Canada. 
Salt is prepared in California from sea water, and 
in Utah from the water of the Great Salt Lake. The 
process is as follows. Several series of vats or tanks, 
about a foot deep, are set up on posts at different 
levels above the ground, so that the brine may be 
drawn from one to the other by means of pipes. 
The salt water is pumped into the highest and left 
to stand for ten days, then it is passed into the next 
series of tanks and exposed to evaporation by the 
sun's rays for two or three days. It is then drawn 
off to a third series of tanks and lastly it runs into 
the fourth, where the salt crystallizes. 

Natural salt is found in New York, Ohio and some 
other States at great depths. Rock salt is found in 
Michigan, Ohio, Kansas, etc. In Europe salt is 
mined by means of shafts, but in the United States 
no shafts are used. The method obtaining in Amer- 
ica is to bore a pipe hole to the salt bed ; if brine 
exists, it is pumped to the surface; if not, then a 
second pipe is inserted in the first, fresh water is 



96 READER FOR COMING AMERICANS 

forced down between the two pipes, and a salt solution 
is pumped up through the smaller pipe. The salt is 
then reclaimed by artificial evaporation by means 
of steam heat. 

Salt has been used by man from time immemorial, 
and, in the Orient, its use has a religious and social 
significance. It is a necessary element in the food 
of most mammals and wild animals beat out trails 
many miles long to get to salt-licks. It is used to 
preserve organic substances from decay and has 
important uses in chemical and industrial arts. 
About 20,000,000 barrels a year are produced in the 
United States, and some 4800 wage-earners are 
employed in the industry. Of the materials used in 
the production of salt the most expensive is the fuel 
needed in plants where evaporation is carried on by 
means of steam. 

Words of Like Sound 

Him — personal pronoun, "I saw him yesterday"; 
hymn — a sacred song, "The choir sang my favorite 
hymn." 

Kill — to take life, "Thou shalt not kill"; kiln — an 
oven, "The potter bakes his wares in a kiln." 

Knave — a rascal, "A miserable knave stole my coat"; 
nave — center of a church, "The choir marched down the 
nave singing." 

Knead — to mix or mold, "The women knead the dough 
in a pan"; need — want, "My wife is in need of a new 
dress." 

Night — the dark hours, "The night is dark"; knight — 
title, "The Sir Knight wore a sword." 

Pail — bucket, "Wilhelm goes to the pump for a pail 
of water"; pale — light color, "The woman is sick, she 
is very pale." 



LESSONS IN INDUSTRIES 97 

V. LEAD 

Lead was known to the ancients, who made some 
use of the metal in commerce. It is mentioned in the 
oldest historical works, and was used in a variety of 
ways by barbaric peoples. The Romans used lead 
to make water pipes, tanks, weights and rings. The 
Chinese have worked lead from remote ages and still 
continue to do so. At present its chief value to them 
is in sheet lead to line chests in which tea is packed 
and transported to all countries on the globe. Lead 
is seldom found native but its ores are common in 
Great Britain, Germany and Spain, while America 
has some rich deposits. 

In the United States lead was first discovered in 
1621, but the quantity was not large. In the middle 
of the eighteenth century it was used as currency in 
parts of the country. In the middle of the nine- 
teenth century the lead deposits of Wisconsin, Illi- 
nois, Missouri and Kansas were found, and a few 
years later those of the Rocky Mountain district were 
located. Our chief supply of lead now comes from 
Idaho, but other States also contribute to make up 
the grand total. The ores that are smelted for the 
purpose of securing lead, contain zinc, silver and 
gold, but these latter metals only occur in small 
quantities. 

When the ore is taken from the mine the first 
operation is to break it up ; it is then passed through 
machines, which remove as far as possible all impuri- 
ties before it is transferred to the smelting furnaces, 



98 READER FOR COMING AMERICANS 

where the final refining process takes place. Lead 
is soft and can be easily melted. It can be readily 
squeezed into the forms of rod, pipe or sheet. Its 
compounds are used in medicines and as pigments. 
Its adaptability for roofing, for lining sinks and 
cisterns, for piping and for shot and balls, makes it 
one of the most serviceable metals of modern times. 

The lead industry is fraught with danger to the 
employees. Men who work in lead mines or in the 
lead smelters must exercise great care, for lead intro- 
duced into the system leads to lead poisoning, which 
is difficult to cure and often proves fatal. Hence 
lead workers should be very careful to wash their 
hands before they eat, for the chief source of poison- 
ing is by eating with unwashed hands. They should 
also change their working garments at the close of 
every day's work and have them washed often. 
Respirators and gloves should also be used by 
employees and some firms wisely insist that their 
employees take these precautions. 

The United States produces annually about 300,- 
000 tons of lead; this is not enough to meet the 
market demand and every year large quantities are 
imported from Mexico and other countries. About 
8000 persons are employed in mines and around 
smelters, the chief business of which is to produce 
lead. The commodity is also a by-product in many 
other smelters where the chief production is either 
copper or zinc. The total value of the lead pro- 
duced in 1907 was about $32,000,000 ; the industry 
is growing and the market demand is strong. 



LESSONS IN INDUSTRIES 99 

Words of Like Sound 

Ceiling — top of a room, "Some plastering fell from the 
ceiling last night"; sealing — to seal with wax or paste, 
"They have a machine for sealing letters." 

Chaste — pure, "The maiden was as chaste as a lily" ; 
chased — pursued, "The dogs chased the deer." 

Choir — church singers, "We have a boy choir in our 
church"; quire — twenty-four sheets of paper, "twenty 
quires of paper make a ream." 

Choose — to pick out, "The boys choose sides to play 
ball"; chews — to chew with the teeth, "The cow chews 
her cud." 

Match — to light with, "Matches should be kept in a 
safe place"; match — like, "Tony and Tesla match well 
in size." 

Pray — act of worship, "The child kneeled by the bed 
to pray"; prey — to take by force, "The lion seized and 
devoured his prey." 

Seed — to sow, "The farmers sow seed in the field"; 
cede — to give up, "France was obliged to cede Acadia 
to England." 



VI. LUMBER 

America is rich in forests, but if the present drain 
goes on for another twenty-five years, there will be 
little timber left in the country. The lumbermen 
market annually about fifty billion feet, valued at 
about $700,000,000. The annual cut is estimated 
to be three times the annual growth and good lumber 
is becoming more scarce and costly every year. The 
lumber generally used in large structures is from 
the pines and firs, which are commonly called ever- 



100 READER FOR COMING AMERICANS 

greens. Furniture, tools and vehicles are made of 
hardwood, such as the oak, chestnut, maple, walnut, 
hickory and birch. The red woods are used for pen- 
cils, while wheel spokes are made of hickory. 

Sawmills are generally erected in or near the for- 
est and the workers camp near the mill. In many 
large plants the trees are cut down by machinery. 
The limbs are chopped off by the woodsmen and the 
logs are ready for the mill. They are usually hauled 
out in winter on sleds, to the mill if near, to a lumber 
railway or to a stream for "driving" down with the 
spring freshets. In the mill the logs are sawed into 
boards or large timbers, then the product is seasoned, 
or dried out, so that the lumber will not shrink, crack 
or warp after it is used in buildings, etc. The pro- 
cess of drying timber is sometimes carried on in the 
open air and sometimes in kilns by artificial heat. 

Lumber meets the needs of men in a thousand ways, 
in the home, in factories, in mines and in commerce. 
Large quantities of wood are annually ground into 
pulp and made into paper, the yield of firewood each 
year is immense, and we have learned that leather is 
tanned from extracts of the bark of chestnut, oak 
and hemlock. Trees also yield tar, rosin and tur- 
pentine, while many chemicals are derived from the 
products of the forest. Lumber being thus so impor- 
tant in the industrial and domestic life of the nation, 
it behooves America to take care of her forests, so 
that the annual cut will not exceed the annual 
growth; for thus only will the forests continue to 
yield the necessary amount of products to supply 
our needs. 



LESSONS IN INDUSTRIES 101 

Words of Like Sound 

Feet — plural of foot, "My lot is forty feet wide" ; 
feat — an exploit, "Dan thinks it quite a feat to jump 
the fence." 

Flee — to run away, "The wicked flee when no man 
pursueth"; flea — an insect, "The flea torments the dog." 

Fur — soft hair, "My girl has a fur muff" ; fir — a tree, 
"The fir tree is a kind of pine." 

I — pronoun, "It is I, be not afraid"; eye — organ of 
sight, "I got a cinder in my eye." 

Red — a color, "Our flag is red, white and blue"; 
read — did read, "My boy read the paper to me." 

Pitch — to throw, "I saw the men pitch quoits"; 
pitch — tar, "They daubed the seams of the boat with 
pitch" ; pitch — inclination, "A roof with a steep pitch 
does not leak easily." 

Your — personal pronoun, "Is this your purse?" ewer 
— a pitcher, "She poured water from the ewer into the 
basin." 



VII. RICE 

Rice is the cereal most used by man, being the 
principal article of food in countries containing two 
thirds of the world's population. Rice is native in 
India and was cultivated there from the earliest times. 
It is supposed to have been introduced into China 
from India about 2822 B. C. It is also produced in 
North and South America, Europe, Africa and in 
the islands of the sea. The annual product is esti- 
mated at 170,000,000,000 pounds, one third of which 
is grown in India, another third in China and the 
rest in Japan, the Philippines, America, Africa, etc. 

Rice was introduced into the United States in 1647, 
and for two hundred years it was chiefly grown in 



102 READER FOR COMING AMERICANS 

the Carolinas and Georgia. During the last twenty 
years the cereal is grown in Louisiana and Texas, 
and at present about ninety-five per cent of the total 
production in America is produced in these States. 
The industry has grown very rapidly in the last 
decade by the introduction of improved machinery, 
which enables one man and five mules to do in a day 
what it took a whole family and hired help to do 
previously in a season. In 1890, 137,000,000 pounds 
were produced in America ; now the annual produc- 
tion is more than 500,000,000 pounds. During this 
time the consumption of rice in America has more 
than doubled, so that producers find a constantly 
growing market. 

Rice, as every other cereal, must be prepared for 
market. The primitive method of milling was to 
place the rice in a hollow stone or block of wood, 
then pound it with a stone pestle ; the blow cracked the 
hull, which was then removed from the cereal by fric- 
tion. The hull and the bran were later separated 
from the grain by the process of winnowing. This 
primitive method was used in the United States when 
rice was first cultivated, and it is the process still in 
vogue in Asiatic countries. Improved machinery 
enables the American to prepare for market in a 
given period nearly one hundred times more rice than 
can be done by the old method by a laborer in India 
or China. 

Words of Like Sound 

Lax — loose, weak, "John's teacher is lax in school 
discipline"; lacks — wanting, without, "Henry's teacher 
lacks good sense." 



LESSONS IN INDUSTRIES 103 

Lesson — a task, "Bridget has learned her lesson"; 
lessen — to diminish, "We must lessen our living ex- 
penses." 

Links — part of a chain, "A blacksmith mended the 
broken links in the chain"; lynx — an animal, "The lynx 
is a savage but cowardly animal." 

Nose — organ of smell, "The drunkard has a red nose"; 
knows — does know, "The boy knows his lesson per- 
fectly." 

Order — neatness, "The girl puts the boss's desk in 
order"; order — command, "The boss gave an order to 
the gatekeeper." 

Plain — level, "A prairie is a grassy plain"; plain — 
clear, "The teacher made the lesson very plain"; plane — 
a tool, "The carpenter smooths the board with his 
plane"; plane — a mine slope, "The car of coal goes 
down the plane." 



VIII. PRINTING 

Lawrence Coster, a Dutchman, made the first mov- 
able type. His invention was an accident which 
happened as follows : One day he went to the woods 
with his grandchildren. The little fellows wanted 
him to carve their names on the bark of the beech 
trees. He took his penknife to do this, for he was 
fond of whittling, and split off some five pieces of 
bark. He then cut the letters of the alphabet upon 
them, one letter on each piece, wrapped them in a 
piece of soft paper and carried them home. When 
he opened the package, he saw the forms of some of 
the letters distinctly printed on the white paper. 
This suggested the possibility of printing, and Coster 
thought and thought upon it, until at last he in- 



104 READER FOR COMING AMERICANS 

vented the plan of printing books. He whittled pieces 
of wood into types, which he properly arranged and 
adjusted in a press. He then, by means of a long 
lever, operated his machine to print. 

John Gutenberg (1444) of Mentz, Germany, 
learned all that Coster knew and further developed 
the art of printing by inventing cut metal types. 

Cast metal types were invented by Peter Schoeffer 
(1455), but the first work printed from them did not 
appear until seven years later. 

William Caxton (1471), having learned the art of 
printing in Flanders, set up the first printing press 
in London. 

In 1800, the Earl of Stanhope invented an im- 
proved printing press, and fourteen years later the 
first steam printing machine was put up in London. 

Cowper and Applegath (1827) invented a four- 
cylinder machine, which printed 5000 copies in an 
hour. Twenty years later, Applegath invented an 
eight-cylinder machine which printed 12,000 copies 
an hour. 

In the early fifties, Hoe's printing machine, an 
American invention, had ten feeding cylinders and 
printed 20,000 copies an hour. 

Today the best printing machines feed themselves 
with paper from a continuous web; print both sides 
at one operation ; supply themselves with ink ; damp 
the paper ; cut it into sheets ; fold the sheets ; register 
the number of impressions, and produce more than 
20,000 copies an hour. This achievement in modern 
printing is possible because of the development of 
the art of stereotyping and electrotyping. 



LESSONS IN INDUSTRIES 105 

Words of Like Sound 

Bough — a limb, "I cut the green bough from the tree"; 
bow — to nod, "Petro made a bow to the lady"; bow — the 
front, "Hans stood in the bow of the boat." 

Letter — a character of the alphabet, "The small boy 
learns his A B C's" ; letter — a written message, "My 
brother wrote me a letter." 

Piece — a part, "Give me a piece of bread" ; peace — 
quiet, without strife, "Grant said, 'Let us have peace'." 

Sack — a bag, "We got a sack of flour at the store"; 
sack — a garment, "Freda has a pretty new sack." 

Sea — a large body of water, "We had a severe storm 
at sea"; see — to look, "We see many new things in 
America." 

Seem — to appear, "I seem to be learning rapidly" ; 
seam — a crack, "There was a seam in the face of the 
coal"; seam — edges joined, "My new coat ripped at the 
seam." 



IX. PAPER 

The word paper is derived from the word papyrus, 
a reed, the pith of which was used by the Egyptians 
to make the thin film on which writings were pre- 
served. Eumenes, King of Pergamus in Asia Minor, 
two hundred years before Christ, invented a way to 
make parchment from the skins of animals. At the 
beginning of the Christian era, the Chinese made 
paper from pulp artificially prepared, but down to 
the twelfth century little was known of the process 
of paper manufacture. The knowledge of the art 
seems to have traveled westward and, in 1100 A. D., 
the Moors introduced its manufacture into Spain. 
Linen paper was made in Europe in the following 



106 READER FOR COMING AMERICANS 

century, specimens of which are today found in some 
of the European monasteries. 

The first paper mill in England was erected at 
Dartford, in the year 1590, which produced coarse 
white paper. Writing and printing papers were 
manufactured at this time in France and Holland. 
Persecutions drove some of the manufacturers to 
other countries where they set up factories and 
taught the people the secrets of the manufacture. 

The first paper-making machine was patented in 
England in the beginning of the last century by a 
Frenchman, and in 1807 the machine was improved 
and could manufacture paper in a web of indefinite 
length. In 1856, esparto, or Spanish grass, was 
introduced in the manufacture, and the following year 
a process was discovered to make parchment paper, 
which is paper passed through a solution of sulphuric 
acid whereby it becomes a tough, skin-like material. 

The paper industry has developed very rapidly in 
the United States, which at present produces a larger 
tonnage than any other country. Paper is made 
from a variety of raw materials, but the most impor- 
tant of them in quantity and economy is wood. For 
this reason the large paper mills are found in States 
where wood of the right quality can be plentifully 
obtained. 

The paper industry is closely associated with the 
intellectual life of the people. Paper is the medium 
above all others for the dissemination of knowledge, 
for communication between friends and for the art 
of decorating the interiors of buildings. The cost 
of the paper used to publish books is larger than that 



LESSONS IN INDUSTRIES 107 

used in any other kind of printed product. If esti- 
mated in tonnage, the amount used in newspapers 
leads. It takes each year more than a million tons 
of paper to print the world's news for the use of the 
people of North America. More than 600,000 tons 
are put into books, and another 150,000 tons are 
used for writing papers. About 70,000 persons are 
employed in the industry. 

We seldom think what quantities of paper are used 
in simple business transactions. The transfer system 
on our trolleys requires annually more than 3,000,- 
000,000 slips. The telephone subscriber's books in 
three large cities number 1,500,000 and contain 
3,000,000 pounds of paper. Papers and magazines 
enter every home and if all that are printed were 
equally divided, each family would have two papers 
per day. About 10,000 different books are issued 
annually, and the post office department handles each 
year half as many letters as there are people in the 
United States. This shows how intimately associated 
with the intellectual and social life of the people is 
the paper industry. In the printed page are con- 
served the results achieved by inventors and scientists 
of all ages who have stood in the van of civilization. 

Words of Like Sound 

Dew — condensed moisture, "The dew makes the grass 
wet"; due — matured, "My rent will be due Saturday." 

Done — accomplished, "This work is nearly done"; 
dun — to solicit, "The grocer will dun me if I do not pay." 

Draft (draught) — to sketch, "I have a draft of my 
new house"; draft — a current of air, "Don't sit in a 
draft" ; draft — anything drawn, "John sent me a bank 



108 READER FOR COMING AMERICANS 

draft"; (draughts, checkers, "I saw two men playing at 
draughts"). 

Earn — to gain by service, "I make out to earn my 
living"; urn — a vase, a receptacle, "There are flowers in 
the urn in the yard." 

Right — not wrong, "When we do what is right we 
are happy"; right — not left, "Always keep to the right 
in driving"; rite — a ceremony, "The rite of baptism is 
performed by the priest"; write — to mark, "I write 
letters with a steel pen" ; wright — a mechanic, "My 
father was a wheel-wright." 



X. IRON 

Iron is one of the metallic elements found in nature 
which cannot be decomposed by any method known 
to science. It is found in nearly all rocks. No one 
knows who first discovered it, for men made imple- 
ments of iron in prehistoric times. Iron is found 
native in small quantities, but is chiefly derived from 
ores which are abundant and widespread. It is 
found in plants and animals, in sea and mineral 
water. It exists in the sun and stars and comes from 
space to earth in the form of meteorites. 

Large iron ore deposits are found in the United 
States. In the Appalachian field, stretching from 
Newfoundland to Alabama, large deposits of rather 
impure ore are found. The deposits of the Lake 
Superior region are extensive and pure and easily 
mined and transported to market. The Rocky 
Mountains and the ranges nearer the Pacific Coast 
contain inexhaustible supplies of iron. Colorado, 
having a supply of coal suitable to smelting, is the 



LESSONS IN INDUSTRIES 109 

only State in this region that has developed her iron 
fields. The ore is found at varying depths and some- 
times, as in the Messabi Range, is obtained by surface 
mining. 

The ore when mined is transported to furnaces 
where the impurities are separated and the iron, in 
a more or less pure form, is run into molds ; this after 
cooling is known as cast-iron. This product is very 
brittle and not malleable. 

Wrought iron is produced by a process of "pud- 
dling," and can be worked up to finished products. 
The quantit}' of iron produced annually in the world 
is about sixty million tons, nearly half of which is 
produced in the United States. The major part of 
the production of the furnaces of America is used in 
the making of steel. Iron, together with coal, is the 
most important of the mineral substances, and forms 
the material basis of the industrial prosperity of the 
nation. The United States is fortunate in the pos- 
session of large quantities of both. 

Words of Like Sound 

Can — able to do, "I can go home if I wish"; can — a 
tin vessel, "We get milk in a quart can." 

Mold — a pattern, "He ran lead bullets in a mold"; 
mold — to shape, "I saw a woman mold bread" ; mold— a 
fungus, "There was mold on the cheese." 

Range — a cooking stove, "Mary built a fire in the 
range"; range — a row or series, "The road crosses a 
range of hills"; range — an area, "There is a deer range 
in the park." 

Steal — to rob, "The Bible says, 'Thou shalt not 
steal' "; steel — refined iron, "Hans works in a steel-mill." 

Wait — to delay, "I will wait for you at the corner" ; 



110 READER FOR COMING AMERICANS 

weight — heaviness, "Did you find out the weight of the 
coal?" 

Wave — water, "A great wave dashed over the ship's 
deck"; wave — to move, "I saw Hilda wave her handker- 
chief." 



XI. STEEL 

Steel is manufactured from iron by one of two 
general methods, (1) by burning the carbon out of 
pig iron (cast-iron) as in the Bessemer and open- 
hearth processes; (2) by* adding carbon to wrought 
iron as in the crucible process. Cast-iron contains 
about four per cent of carbon, wrought iron only a 
slight trace of it, while the various kinds of steel are 
mixtures between these extremes. Steel containing 
less than one third per cent of carbon can be welded ; 
if more than three fourths per cent it can be tem- 
pered to different degrees of hardness. While carbon 
exerts the greatest influence on the physical proper- 
ties of steel, other ingredients, as manganese, nickel, 
chromium, tungsten, etc., are often added, especially 
to crucible steel, to influence its hardness. 

Steel is sometimes classified as soft, medium and 
hard, the demarcation however being indefinite ; that 
between soft and medium is sometimes called mild 
steel. Trade names are sometimes given to steel 
according to its uses. For example, from the Besse- 
mer and open-hearth processes are obtained: (1) 
from the soft steel, what are known as fire-box steel, 
flange steel, rivet steel; (2) from mild or medium 
steel, shell steel (for boilers), structural steel, ma- 



LESSONS IN INDUSTRIES 111 

chinery steel; (3) from hard steel, rail steel. From 
the hard steel made by the crucible process are ob- 
tained tool steel and spring steel. Steel castings are 
made by pouring the molten metal into molds of the 
required shape the same as is done in making iron 
castings. About seventy-five per cent of the iron 
produced in the United States is used for manufac- 
turing steel. 

Steel is of great service in modern industry and the 
articles made from it are constantly increasing. 
Railway rails up to 1855 were made of iron and were 
speedily worn out; steel rails last about six years. 
American manufacturers were the first to make 
freight cars of steel and the annual output in the 
country is now about 70,000. Pittsburg is the cen- 
ter of the American steel industry and Pennsylvania 
produces more than fifty per cent of the entire 
amount manufactured. Ohio, Illinois and New York 
follow in the order here given. The total steel pro- 
duction of the world is about 60,000,000 tons, about 
one half of which is produced in the United States. 

Words of Like Sound 

Ring — a circle, "The horses run fast around the circus 
ring" ; ring — to sound, "The sexton will ring the curfew 
bell at nine o'clock"; wring — to squeeze, "The women 
wash and wring the clothes." 

Road — a way, "The road to the city passes our 
house"; rode — did ride, "John rode the bay mare to 
town" ; rowed — did row, "I rowed a boat on the river." 

Rock — stone, "They are drilling the rock for a blast"; 
rock — to tip, "Ann rocks baby to sleep in the cradle." 

Roll — to turn, "They roll the big log over and over" ; 
roll — a sound, "John beat the long roll on the drum"; 



112 READER FOR COMING AMERICANS 

roll — a biscuit, "I had only coffee and a roll for break- 
fast." 

Tack — a small nail, "The carpet is fastened down with 
tacks" ; tack — direction, "In sailing against a head wind 
we tack." 

Tick — a clicking sound, "The baby laughed to hear 
the watch tick"; tick — bed covering, "The man filled 
the bed-tick with straw"; tick — credit, "The baker made 
a tick of what I bought." 



XII. STEAMBOATS 

Ocean travel is one of the wonders of our time. 
It is made possible because of the steamers which 
cross every sea on the globe. The steamboat, the 
predecessor of the modern steamer, was invented more 
than a century ago (1788). Many attempts were 
made to navigate by steam power, but the practica- 
bility of it was demonstrated by Robert Fulton, in 
August, 1807, when the Clermont made the trip from 
New York to Albany, a distance of 150 miles, in 
thirty-two hours. 

At the time the steamboat was started, crowds lined 
the shore to see "Fulton's Folly." Less than thirty 
people in the city of New York believed in the success 
of the enterprise. The crowd hardly expected the 
boat to move a mile an hour. When the Clermont 
sailed over the waters and successfully made the trip 
the question of steam navigation was solved. This 
first steamboat was crude, its movements were slow, 
but with it came a new era in water transportation. 
In 1809, steamboats were placed on the Ohio and, 



LESSONS IN INDUSTRIES 113 

within the next decade, they made the trip up the 
Mississippi from New Orleans. Steamers were used 
for a long time in the coasting trade in America 
before an attempt was successfully made, in 1819, 
to cross the ocean. That year the steam vessel 
Savannah for the first time crossed from New York 
to Liverpool. 

Ocean travel was greatly facilitated by the use of 
coal in the production of steam (1836), by the inven- 
tion of the screw propeller (1836-38), and by the use 
of iron for ship building (1838). In 1838, steam 
vessels began to ply regularly between America and 
England, and the same year England began to build 
war steamers. The rivalry between sailing ships and 
steamers was for a time intense, but as the latter 
increased in strength, speed and capacity freight 
and passenger traffic was largely transferred to them. 
The Clermont foreshadowed ocean travel by steam 
navigation, which today is considered as safe and 
regular as railroad travel. 

Words of Like Sound 

Side — a surface or boundary, "A stone hit the side of 
my house"; sighed — breathed deeply, "The woman 
sighed and cried." 

Sole — only, "I was the sole survivor of the wreck"; 
soul — spirit, "I pray Thee, Lord, my soul to take" ; 
sole — the bottom, "The shoemaker put a sole on my 
shoe"; sole — a fish, "We bought sole in the fish market." 

Steak — a piece of meat, "Beef-steak is very expen- 
sive"; stake — a small post, "I drove a stake into the 
ground"; stake — a bet, "To play games for a stake is 
gambling." 



114 READER FOR COMING AMERICANS 

Straight — not crooked. "The avenue is wide and 
straight"; strait — a narrow passage, "The Narrows is 
a strait leading into New York harbor." 

Suit — to please, "I hope the house may suit you"; 
suit — clothes, "Hans has a new suit of clothes" ; suit — 
action of law, "I am subpoenaed as witness in a law- 
suit." 

Watch — a timepiece, "Does your watch keep good 
time?" watch — to guard, "Tiger is a good watch dog"; 
watch — to observe, "I can watch the people from my 
window." 



XIII. LOCOMOTIVES 

Steam was used as a motive power long before 
Stephenson applied it to locomotives. The first 
locomotive built by Stephenson was in 1814, when it 
drew thirty tons and traveled at the rate of six miles 
an hour. In 1829, he won a prize for the best loco- 
motive, which weighed no more than six tons and 
traveled at the rate of twenty miles an hour. 

The first locomotive seen in America was imported 
from England in 1829: it proved useless because the 
track was not built for so heavy a weight. Two 
years later (1831) the Baltimore & Ohio Railroad 
Company chose steam as the most practical motive 
power. Its first engine was the "Tom Thumb," 
which made thirteen miles an hour. About that time 
the "Best Friend," of the South Carolina Railroad, 
with five loaded cars ran from sixteen to twenty-one 
miles an hour. The following year a locomotive 
made the trip from Albany to Schenectady (seventeen 
miles) in one hour. At that time (1832), it took 



LESSONS IN INDUSTRIES 115 

four days to go from Albany to Buffalo; now we 
make the trip in six hours. At a dinner given in 
honor of the trip from Albany to Schenectady, one 
of the toasts voiced a daring prophecy : "The Buffalo 
Railroad — May we soon breakfast in Utica, dine in 
Rochester and sup with our friends on Lake Erie." 

As soon as the locomotive proved practical, the 
development of the railroads of the country was 
rapid. Men were anxious to reap the first fruits of 
the new transportation system. Engines and rolling 
stock built about the middle of the last century were 
not one sixth as heavy as those built at present. Hence 
the roads and bridges first built were not strong 
enough to bear the heavier weight and larger loads. 
This has necessitated the rebuilding of many roads 
and bridges. In the year 1869 the first railroad 
crossing the continent was built. Today the capital 
invested in railroads represents one seventh of the 
total wealth of the country. Two fifths of the total 
mileage of the world is in the United States, and the 
extent of our railroads exceeds that of any other 
country. 

Words of Like Sound 

Ate — did eat, "The man ate his lunch"; eight — a 
number, "It is after eight o'clock." 

Bad — not good, "I fear you are a bad boy"; bade — 
did bid, "My friend bade me goodbye." 

Bard — a poet, "Shakespeare is called the 'Bard of 
Avon' "; barred — shut out, "Teams are barred from the 
new pavement." 

Mark — a line or sign, "I drew a chalk mark across the 
floor"; mark — a coin, "The mark is a German coin." 



116 READER FOR COMING AMERICANS 

Till — to cultivate, "The farmers till the soil"; till — a 
small box, "The money is in the till under the counter" ; 
till — time, "I cannot go till tomorrow." 

Well — a deep hole, "I drew a bucket of water from 
the well" ; well — health, "I was sick, but am now well." 



XIV. ELECTRICITY 

Electricity is an invisible agent which, in conjunc- 
tion with special mechanical devices, manifests energy 
that is of service to man. It was known in its sim- 
plest form long before the Christian era, but the 
originator of the science of electricity was Gilbert, 
who lived and conducted his experiments in the seven- 
teenth century. The men who have brought it into 
practical use are, Leyden, Galvani, Volta, Franklin, 
Wheatstone, Morse, Edison, etc. 

Down to the middle of the last century electricity 
was little used and was of small commercial value. 
About that time its practical application to the art 
of telegraphy was a prophecy of its commercial and 
industrial importance. Ten years later the dynamo 
was constructed which made it possible to apply elec- 
tricity as a motor power in factories and shops. 
Another decade passed before it was applied to the 
stock-ticker, the burglar alarm and other electrical 
contrivances, useful to men in domestic and commer- 
cial life. 

In 1880 the telephone came into vogue and elec- 
tricity came into more common use as an illumi- 
nant. Ten years later engineers were busily engaged 
applying this subtle agent in the operation of street 



LESSONS IN INDUSTRIES 117 

cars. At the beginning of the present century the 
adoption of electricity as a motor power for factories, 
shops, mines, railroads and automobiles is marked. 
So general has the application of electricity become 
that every important industry in the country uses it 
in one form or another. It is an indispensable factor 
in modern civilization and much of the convenience 
and comfort of life are dependent upon it. By it our 
homes are lighted, and its application to heating 
rooms and cooking food is annually extending. 
Every town of importance has its streets lighted by 
electricity, its fire-alarm system operated by elec- 
tricity, and the street cars lighted, heated and moved 
by electricity. It carries the messages of man to 
the ends of the earth, "has moored the continents of 
the globe side by side," and transfers life and death 
signals to ships on the ocean. It refines our metals, 
welds our steel and is of inestimable value in the arts 
and sciences. The mechanical agencies through 
which it works are innumerable and upon no other 
element does the inventive genius of our generation, 
in order to devise new instruments to meet the require- 
ments of our industrial and commercial age, devote 
so much time. In the last quarter of a century, no 
fewer than 19,000 patents have been taken out by 
electricians. 

To produce this power men are harnessing water- 
falls everywhere, but in no place is this done as at 
Niagara Falls, where large buildings, deep shafts, 
immense tubes, powerful turbines, and long tunnels 
are the tools used to harness this wonder of nature 
and make it subservient to the needs of man. Elec- 



118 READER FOR COMING AMERICANS 

tricity can be transmitted for scores of miles without 
much loss ; some of the most eminent electricians have 
suggested the possibility of utilizing the coal at the 
mouths of the tunnels and shafts where it is mined 
to produce electricity, and to distribute the same 
from thence rather than carry the bulky and dirty 
commodity to market and cart it to factory, shop 
and home. 

In no country is electricity used as extensively as 
in America, and the enterprise and ingenuity of 
Americans in the use and development of electrical 
appliances accounts largely for the marvelous indus- 
trial development of North America. If the money 
annually spent in the United States upon electrical 
appliances were evenly divided each person in the 
Republic would have between seven and eight dollars. 

Words of Like Sound 

Bass — a low tone, "Melukas has a good bass voice" ; 
base — the bottom, "I stood at the base of a tall column." 

Beat — to strike^ "I beat a bass drum in the band"; 
beet — a vegetable, "Beet is good pickled in vinegar." 

Been — past of to be, "John has been to the circus" ; 
bin — a box, "The oats for the horse are in the bin." 

Beer — a drink, "Anton got tipsy drinking beer"; 
bier — a wooden stretcher, "They carried the dead man 
on a bier." 

Berth — a sleeping place, "I slept in a berth on the 
ship"; birth — coming into existence, "Tomorrow is my 
birth-day." 

Belle — a fine lady, "Marie is the village belle" ; bell — 
to ring, "The fire bell rang last night." 

Palm — inside of hand, "I held the young bird in my 
palm"; palm — tree, "Dates grow on a kind of palm." 






LESSONS IN INDUSTRIES 119 

XV. THE TELEGRAPH 

Rapid messages sent from place to place depend 
upon the telegraph ; verbal communication between 
important centers depends upon the telephone ; com- 
munication between widely separated ships upon the 
sea can be carried on only by wireless telegraphy. 

The first to discover the action of an electric cur- 
rent on a magnetic needle was Oersted, a Danish 
physicist, who died in 1851. This laid the founda- 
tion of telegraphy. 

In 1832, Samuel F. B. Morse began his experi- 
ments and three years later perfected an instrument 
by which he successfully sent verbal messages along 
an electric wire. The following year (1836) Pro- 
fessor Wheatstone, of King's College, London, made 
an electro-magnetic apparatus by which thirty sig- 
nals were sent through four miles of wire. 

In 1839, the first telegraph line was set up from 
London to West Drayton, a distance of thirteen 
miles, by W. F. Cooke. Morse had considerable diffi- 
culty in convincing business men of the practicability 
of his invention. Men were skeptical and would not 
put their money into it. The government came to 
his aid. In 1844, it made an appropriation to build 
a telegraph line between Washington and Baltimore. 
This in America and the London experiment in Eng- 
land proved the practicability of telegraphy and in 
the next two years telegraph companies were organ- 
ized in both countries. 

A few years later and the leading cities of the 
Eastern States were connected by telegraph lines, 



120 READER FOR COMING AMERICANS 

and before the middle of the last century lines went 
as far west as Chicago. In 1861, the government 
made an appropriation to carry a telegraph line 
across the continent, thus connecting the cities on the 
Atlantic with those on the Pacific Ocean. 

Telegraphic communication between the continents 
was more difficult, but Cyrus W. Field essayed the 
task and succeeded. 

In 1851, the first submarine cable, crossing the 
English Channel, was laid. The wire was enclosed 
in a covering of gutta-percha. Six years later and 
Field was busy laying a cable across the Atlantic, 
to join Europe and America by telegraphic commu- 
nication. After 300 miles were laid the cable 
snapped. The 3^ear 1865 saw Field making another 
attempt to tie the continents together with a copper 
wire, but again the rope snapped in mid-ocean. The 
following year he made the third attempt and success- 
fully laid the cable. In this third effort the cable 
lost the previous year was recovered, spliced and 
completed. 

The invention of wireless telegraphy is recent, but 
it has proven practical and the United States Signal 
Service and the United States Navy have adopted it. 
Wireless messages have already been successfully con- 
veyed a distance of more than 4000 miles. How far 
this invention will supplant the telegraph and cable 
remains to be seen. 

The telephone, winch was invented by Alexander 
G. Bell, in 1870, is more convenient than the tele- 
graph for short distances, but it has not largely inter- 
ferred with the business of the telegraph companies. 



LESSONS IN INDUSTRIES 121 

Men a thousand miles apart have communicated with 
each other by telephone and the prophecy is that 
San Francisco and New York will in time communi- 
cate with each other by this means. 

The telegraph lines of Great Britain were trans- 
ferred to the government in 1869; those of America 
are in the hands of private corporations. 

Words of Like Sound 

Air — the atmosphere, "The wind is the air in motion" ; 
heir — one who inherits, "Guisseppe is heir to a house in 
Naples." 

Blue — a color, "Petro wears a blue cap" ; blew — did 
blow, "The wind blew my hat off yesterday." 

Bruise — =to pound or batter, "Did Paul bruise his 
finger with a hammer?" brews- — to brew, "Old Nan 
brews beer." 

Cannon — a great gun, "There are many cannon in 
the fort"; canon — a church law, "A priest must obey 
the canon law of the church." 

Canvass — to solicit, "They canvass for money for the 
Y. M. C. A."; canvas — cloth, "Jacola's overalls are made 
of canvas." 

Mass — quantity, "A great mass of coal fell from the 
roof" ; mass — a rite, "Many people attend mass Sunday 



mormn 



XVI. LEATHER 

Leather is the skin of animals prepared by chemi- 
cal and mechanical processes. The skin thus pre- 
pared can resist decay and is given certain new qual- 
ities which make it of great commercial value. 



122 READER FOR COMING AMERICANS 

The art of dressing hides has been known from pre- 
historic times. The object to be attained in the art 
is to overcome the tendency of the hide to break, to 
enable it to resist the effect of water, and to increase 
the strength of the skin. The processes of curing 
skins, whereby these results are secured, vary greatly. 
China has specimens of leather 3000 years old. The 
Egyptians, 3000 years before the Christian era, had 
knowledge of the art of tanning. When Columbus 
discovered America he found that the Indians knew 
the art of dressing the skins of deer and buffalo, and 
the Eskimos today dress leather in a primitive way. 
In 1790, the use of lime to loosen the hair on the 
hide very materially aided the tanning process, and 
since then tanners have successfully devised means by 
which to shorten the time necessary in the process of 
preparing hides for market. The skin of almost 
every four-footed animal is used, but the various 
kinds of leather marketed are named partly from 
their use and partly from the ingredient used in their 
manufacture. 

The tanning industry in the United States employs 
about 10,000 workers and is chiefly concentrated in 
those States having hemlock and oak forests, which 
supply bark necessary for tanning. Leather from 
the tanneries is used for many purposes but the major 
part of the product is consumed in the making of 
foot-wear, belting, harness, and carriage and furni- 
ture upholstery. Sole-leather, in 1907, consumed 
more than fifty per cent of all the leather manufac- 
tured in the country. The boot and shoe industry 
of America is very extensive and is practically limited 



LESSONS IN INDUSTRIES 123 

to the Northern States east of Chicago. Massachu- 
setts leads all other States in the manufacture of 
shoes and is credited with more than forty per cent 
of the total product. The shoe industry for the 
most part is located in large cities and the total 
number of wage-earners is about 155,000. The 
glove industry also consumes much leather and gives 
employment to about 17,000 wage-earners. Thus if 
we take the number of workers who are employed in 
the leather industry together with those who work 
the leather into finished products, such as shoes, 
gloves, etc., the total number of employees will be 
more than 250,000, most of whom live under urban 
conditions. 

Words of Like Sound 

Coat — a garment, "David has a new cloth coat"; 
cote — pen for sheep, "The sheep are safe in their cote." 

Colonel — an army officer, "The colonel rides at the 
head of his regiment" ; kernel — a seed, "We shell the 
kernels of corn from the cob." 

Core — the center, "The core of the apple contains the 
seeds"; corps — a body of troops, "An army corps is 
composed of several divisions." 

Hide — to conceal, "The children play at 'hide and 
seek' " ; hide — a skin, "General Grant's father dealt in 
hides and leather." 

Miner — one who mines, "The miner digs coal for us 
to burn" ; minor — under age, "A minor cannot vote." 

Sight — power of seeing, "I can see well; my sight is 
good"; site — situation, "Smith has bought a site for a 
new house"; cite — to summon, "The constable came to 
cite me to court." 



124 READER FOR COMING AMERICANS 
XVII. CHEMICALS 

The manufacture of chemicals is an important in- 
dustry and is constantly growing. The army of 
workers employed in it numbers more than 60,000, 
and the number of establishments in which they work 
is about 1800. Hundreds of substances are produced 
in these chemical factories which are of great value ; 
no home in the land can get along without these 
products, while they furnish some of the most essen- 
tial articles used in manufacturing industries. Our 
medicines and our disinfectants are chemical products, 
the colors used in dyeing come from the same source, 
and so do many ingredients used in the arts. The 
farmer gets a large percentage of his fertilizers from 
the chemical works, and they also supply him with 
material for killing vermin which injure trees and 
destroy crops. 

One of the largest products of the chemical facto- 
ries is sulphuric acid, which is largely used in the 
production of other substances. So important is 
sulphuric acid in modern life that the amount pro- 
duced in a country is taken as an indicator of its 
civilization. The United States at present produces 
about 2,000,000 tons a year. The annual tonnage 
has been greatly increased by the erection of facto- 
ries near smelters, the fumes from which are used in 
the manufacture of sulphuric acid. 

The chemical industry has recently been stimulated 
by the application of electricity in manufacturing. 
Many factories have been erected near Niagara 
Falls, where cheap electrical power can be had. The 



LESSONS IN INDUSTRIES 125 

chemical plants of this country are chiefly found in 
the East where the country is most thickly populated. 
Each of the States of New York and Pennsylvania 
has more than 300 factories, while the State of 
Wyoming reports fewer than five. As the States 
are more fully populated, the number of factories is 
increased. 

No important industry in the country is without 
its chemical department, in which expert chemists 
are employed to decide what ingredients are con- 
tained in goods and metals whose quality determines 
the markets open for them. The employees in this 
industry also must exercise great care personally, for 
the effect of the acids and fumes incident to the work 
is injurious to the system. 

Words of Like Sound 

Cord — a string, "I tied the package with a strong 
cord"; cord — a measure for fire wood, "I sawed a cord 
of wood for fifty cents"; chord- — a musical tone, "He 
played 'The Lost Chord' on the organ." 

Cousin — a relative, "My cousin is visiting me"; 
cozen — to cheat, "The boy tried to cozen me at craps." 

Creek — a small stream, "We went fishing in the 
creek"; creak — a harsh sound, "I heard the door creak 
in the night." 

Dear — a term of affection, "My children are very 
dear to me"; deer — an animal, "Deer is sold in market 
as venison"; dear — high-priced, "Venison is good eating 
but dear in price." 

Dessert — last course, "We had pudding for dessert"; 
desert — barren, "The camel is called the 'Ship of the 
Desert.' " 

Rest — quiet, "I am tired, let me rest awhile"; rest — 
remainder, "Where is the rest of the money?" 



126 READER FOR COMING AMERICANS 
XVIII. SILK INDUSTRY 

The silk industry was introduced into Europe from 
China in 555 A. D. Two monks, missionaries in 
China about to return home, concealed silk-worm eggs 
in a cane, brought them to their native land and 
introduced a new industry to a continent. It was 
not until the twelfth century, however, that the manu- 
facturing of silk assumed commercial importance in 
Europe. Its center then was Sicily, where cater- 
pillars were bred and silk spun and woven. About the 
beginning of the sixteenth century the industry 
spread into Italy, Spain and France. Persecution 
in France and Holland drove men interested in the 
silk industry to England and in 1585 they erected 
silk factories in that country. 

In the sixteenth century the method of manufac- 
turing silk was not much improved upon that which 
the Chinese had practiced centuries before, but in 
1589 Rev. William Lee, watching the nimble fingers 
of his wife knitting, invented a frame for weaving 
silk stockings. This gave a great impulse to the 
industry, but the inventor reaped little profit from 
his invention. He died neglected and in great dis- 
tress. The industry in England was greatly stimu- 
lated in the seventeenth century by French refugees 
who fled to that country when the Edict of Nantes 
was revoked (1685). 

In the seventeenth century, the Italians had better 
machinery for silk manufacturing than the English. 
In 1715 John Lombe went from England to Piedmont 
to learn the method. He secured access to the silk 



LESSONS IN INDUSTRIES 127 

mills, bribing two Italians for the purpose, studied 
the machinery, and made drawings and models of 
its parts. When the Italians found out Lombe's pur- 
poses, he and the two Italians had to fly for their lives, 
but on his return to Derby he erected a silk-throwing 
mill on the Italian model. 

In 1806 Jacquard, a Frenchman, invented an 
apparatus by which the most complicated designs 
may be woven by ordinary workers. The invention 
is a series of punched cards which, attached to the 
silk loom, regulates the elevation of certain of the 
warp threads and the depression of others at each 
movement of the loom. Jacquard met with the same 
fate as other great inventors. Wealthy manufac- 
turers combined to mar the success of his invention 
and rob him of the profits of his genius. Before he 
died he had the pleasure of knowing that his inven- 
tion was in operation on three continents — Europe, 
America and Asia (China), and in a few years after 
his death the same contrivance was successfully ap- 
plied to the manufacture of carpets and other fabrics. 

The silk industry has been rapidly developed in 
America, which now leads the nations of the world 
in the amount of silk goods turned out in its factories. 
The plants are chiefly located in the States of Penn- 
sylvania, New Jersey, New York and Connecticut. 

Words of Like Sound 

Flow — to move smoothly or continuously, "The New 
England rivers flow into the Atlantic"; floe — floating 
ice, "Dr. Grenfell was carried out to sea on a floe." 

Flower — a blossom, "The rose is a favorite flower"; 



128 READER FOR COMING AMERICANS 

flour — ground grain, "White bread is made from wheat 
flour." 

Flue — a passage or duct, "The chimney flue needs 
cleaning"; flew — did fly, "A swallow flew into the 
chimney." 

Fowl — a bird, "A fat fowl well cooked is good eat- 
ing"; foul — filthy, "No one should use foul language." 

Frank — candid, "I like Bill because he is so frank"; 
franc — a coin, "A five franc piece is about ninety-five 
cents (U. S.)." 

Pick — to take, "We pick up the nuts in the woods"; 
pick — a tool, "The miner works with pick and shovel." 



XIX. COTTON INDUSTRY 

The art of weaving cotton into cloth is very old. 
The name of the inventor is not known. The looms 
of Babylon maintained their celebrity long after the 
Assyrian Empire had fallen. Egypt and Phoenicia 
were producers of fine linen centuries before the 
Christian era. 

The tool used by the ancients was a hand-loom 
which was composed of a rectangular frame, from 
one side of which yarn was stretched to the opposite 
side and the transverse thread was passed over and 
under the threads by the hand. This is the loom that 
was used in earliest historic times and it is the one 
used today in semi-civilized countries. This vir- 
tually was the only one used down to the middle of 
the eighteenth century. 

In 1767, James Hargreaves, a weaver of Lancas- 
ter, England, invented a spinning-jenny with eight 
spindles, which supplanted the old way of spinning 



LESSONS IN INDUSTRIES 129 

by hand with the help of the spinning-wheel. But 
Hargreaves fared no better than Jacquard, Lee, Cort 
and many other inventive geniuses. The cotton 
manufacturers leagued themselves against him and 
he died in obscurity and distress. Two years later 
Richard Arkwright, a barber by trade, invented a 
spinning-machine that was operated by water power. 
He at first was persecuted and neglected, but he 
interested a wealthy firm, entered into partnership 
with it, reaped the reward of his invention, was 
knighted by the king and left a large fortune. 

Ten years later (1779) Samuel Crompton invented 
the "mule" in which the spindles are arranged in a 
movable carriage. He did not patent his invention, 
but threw it open to the world. It produced yarn 
very much softer and of treble the fineness of any 
previously made in England. The invention gave 
a great impetus to the cotton industry, but Crompton 
got involved in financial troubles and died in poverty 
and neglect. 

In 1785, Dr. Cartwright invented the power-loom 
which revolutionized the industry. He imitated 
mechanically the three essential movements in weav- 
ing. His machine first separated the threads of the 
warp into two sets, leaving a space through which 
the weft could pass; then the loaded shuttle was 
hurled through, and last was a device to press the 
filling thread against the preceding one, thus making 
a united surface. Cartwright solved the problem but 
was maligned and persecuted by both manufacturers 
and employees. His invention, however, made it 
possible to keep pace in weaving with the spinning 



ISO READER FOR COMING AMERICANS 

machines which had been able to produce far more 
yarn than the hand looms could employ. The Cart- 
wright machine is the one now in use although many 
improvements have been made since his day. Wool 
is spun and woven by virtually the same process. 

The variety of the products of the textile industries 
is very great ; raw cotton, wool and silk can be 
wrought to finished goods of endless variety. The 
cotton industry is concentrated for the most part 
in southern New England, Pennsylvania, North and 
South Carolina and Georgia. The woolen industry 
is chiefly carried on in southern New England, New 
York and Pennsylvania. 

The United States ranks second in cotton manu- 
facture, third in woolen manufacture and first in silk 
manufacture among the nations of the earth. About 
half a million wage-earners are employed in the tex- 
tile industries and the annual product t»f the mills of 
America is valued at about $1,000,000,000. 

Words of Like Sound 

Gate — an entrance, "Always close the gate when you 
go out" ; gait — a movement, "A cow runs with a swinging 
gait." 

Guest — a visitor, "An old friend was my guest last 
week"; guessed — did guess, "I guessed that you were to 
be married." 

Hail — frozen rain, "I heard the hail falling on the 
roof"; hale — hearty, "My grandfather is a hale old 
man" ; hail — salutation, "Hail, Columbia, happy land." 

Hall — a room or building, "The city hall is a fine 
structure" ; "The Union meets in a large hall" ; haul — to 
pull, "The mule teams haul the logs." 



LESSONS IN INDUSTRIES 131 

Pair — two, "Ann has a pair of new gloves"; pear — a 
fruit, "We have a pear tree in our yard"; pare — to peel, 
"Jeanne must pare the potatoes for dinner." 

Pound — to beat, "Don't pound on the door"; pound — 
weight, "A pound avoirdupois is sixteen ounces" ; pound 
— an enclosure, "There are two cows and a pig in the 
village pound." 



XX. STARCH 

Starch is a white substance found in all vegetable 
foods. It is odorless and will not dissolve in cold 
water. The source from which starch is derived dis- 
tinguishes the various kinds found in commerce. It 
is generally presumed that starch finds its chief use 
in laundries, but this is of least significance from a 
commercial standpoint. The names of the different 
kinds of starch used for food are: Arrowroot, tap- 
ioca, sago, corn-starch, rice starch, wheat starch, 
etc. It is used under these various forms for desserts, 
and supplies to infants and old people a nutritious 
and palatable food. Many other articles of diet are 
the product of starch. A large percentage of the 
table syrups are produced from it by an interesting 
process of chemical reaction. Boil starch with a 
weak solution of acid and you obtain a sweet liquor. 
By varying this process starch-sugar is obtained, 
which is used by confectioners for decorative pur- 
poses. This starch-sugar together with a syrupy 
product, known as glucose, forms the basis of candy 
manufacture; it is used in the production of various 
sweets, from the gum-drops to chocolate creams. 



132 READER FOR COMING AMERICANS 

In the arts starch is extensively used in the textile 
industry. Every thread before it is woven is treated 
with a starch solution, so that the shuttle may pass 
over it with the minimum of friction. In the manu- 
facture of cheap goods, starch paste is used for filling, 
giving the fabric the appearance of possessing 
"body" and "finish," both of which vanish with the 
first washing. The same starch paste is also used 
to make the body in calico prints. Starch in the 
corn goes into the making of whiskey, and is exten- 
sively used in the manufacture of alcohol. When it 
is cooked with another substance (diastase) the 
product is sugar which, when fermented, yields alco- 
hol. It is not necessary to separate the starch from 
the grain before it is manufactured into alcohol. 

Thus starch fills a large place in the world: in a 
white shirt it fortifies the heart of many a man; in 
food, it soothes the delicate taste of weak stomachs ; 
in fabrics, it makes the cheap products marketable; 
and in drink it brings many wives and daughters to 
calico dresses. 

Words of Like Sound 

Lower- — not so high, "I occupied the lower berth in 
the stateroom"; lower — to make less, "They threaten to 
lower my wages at the mill"; lore — learning, "The 
teacher was wise in ancient lore." 

Main — chief, principal, "Steel manufacture is the 
main industry of Pittsburg"; mane — long hair of an 
animal's neck, "The bay horse has a black mane"; 
Maine — a State, "Maine is the largest of the New Eng- 
land States." 

Male — the stronger sex, "Male and female made he 



LESSONS IN INDUSTRIES 133 

them"; mail — government carrying system, "I have just 
received two letters by mail." 

Mantle — a cloak, "And in his mantle muffling up his 
face"; mantel — a shelf, "The old clock ticks on the 
mantel." 

Martial — warlike, "The band struck up a stirring 
martial air"; marshal — an officer, "The marshal wore a 
broad sash across his breast." 

Might — strength, "It is a false saying that 'Might 
makes right' " ; might — imperfect of may, "James might 
go if he would" ; mite — a small particle, "A mite of dust 
blew into my eye." 



PART THREE 
GOVERNMENT 



LEST TEACHERS FORGET 

In teaching the elements of government refer to 
local, State and National civic activities. Pictures 
of men holding Federal, State or municipal offices 
should be introduced whenever possible, and an occa- 
sional visit to the city hall, the council chamber, a 
justice's court, the police court, the county court, 
a Federal court, political primaries and conventions, 
etc., will be both interesting and instructive. These 
students should see the laws and customs in actual 
operation. If the pupils are far enough advanced 
let them organize themselves into a council, appoint 
committees, etc., so that each student may play the 
part of town official according to the role assigned 
him. In this way the pupils will live and act parts 
assigned officials according to political usage and 
soon become familiar with the operations of our 
forms of government. 

Whenever a diagram illustrates the lesson the 
teacher should draw an outline on a blackboard or 
a manila sheet, and at the suggestion of the pupils 
fill in the offices, duties, etc. If one of the pupils 
is skilful in drawing, let him put the outline on the 
blackboard and then the teacher, at the suggestion 
of the class, will insert the offices, duties, etc. 



BOOKS OF REFERENCE 

The teacher, who conducts a class in government, 
will find the following books of value : 

"Civil Government in the United States," John 
Fiske, $1.00. 

"The American Commonwealth" (abridged edi- 
tion), James Bryce, $1.75. 

A Comprehensive Almanac (that issued by the 
New York World or the New York Tribune), 25c. 

A Legislative Manual of the State, which may be 
had from a representative in the State Legislature. 

A copy of the city charter and ordinances, to be 
obtained from a city officer. 

A copy of a Legislative bill. 

Copies of forms used in the business of the various 
courts (civil and criminal) and in connection with 
elections. 

Copies of forms used in real estate transactions, 
the various kinds of notes, etc. 

Every institution interested in giving instruction 
in civil government should secure copies of the above 
books and forms that they may be readily consulted 
by a teacher. 



READINGS IN GOVERNMENT 

I. FORMS OF GOVERNMENT 

The governments of Russia, England and the 
United States differ. The first is known as an 
absolute monarchy ; the second as a limited monarchy; 
the third as a democracy. In Russia the Czar is 
supreme. He makes the law; he executes the law; 
he interprets the law. In England the King rules 
but his powers are limited ; the Parliament shares the 
duties of government and curtails the sovereign's 
power. In the United States the people rule; they 
make laws through men of their own choosing. 

The government of the United States has three 
departments : legislative, executive and judicial. 
These three departments are separate but inter- 
dependent. One group of men is elected to make the 
laws ; another to execute and enforce the laws ; and 
still another to interpret or explain the laws. 

Government is a development. We have first the 
township*, then the county, then the State, then the 
Nation. Hence we find townships make counties ; 
counties makes States ; States make the Nation. 

The United States was formed by the federation of 
thirteen States. These original States were thirteen 



*In Virginia and some other States the unit of government differs from 
that in New England, the county organization being the political unit and 
the management of affairs chiefly in the hands of county officers. The large 
plantations of Virginia were in striking contrast to the farms of New Eng- 
land where the people could easily get together and settle the affairs of 
their more compact communities. 



Absolute Mom arc hy 




CZAR- 
CONSTITUTIONAL MONARCHY 




Democracy 




people 



LESSONS IN GOVERNMENT 141 

sovereign powers which entered into a firm league of 
friendship and the National Government was only an 
agent of the States. When the Constitution was 
adopted a Federal Union was formed which assumed 
definite functions that could not well be discharged 
by the individual States. 

Questions 

1. How many forms of government are there? 

2. Describe the three forms of government. 

3. Name countries governed in these different ways. 

4. Tell something about the three departments of 
the government of the United States. 

5. How are these three departments related? 

6. Describe briefly the building up of our govern- 
ment. Name the steps. 

7. How many States formed the first government 
or confederation? 

8. Point out these States on the map. 

9- Describe the relation of the States to each other 
before the adoption of the Constitution. After its 
adoption. 

10. Name some advantages of the new or Federal 
Union. 

Hints to Teachers 

With this lesson use the United States map showing 
the Thirteen Original States. 

Show the relation of the stripes on the American flag 
to the Thirteen States. 

Show the three divisions of government by the three 
circles (see diagram), which are interdependent, and the 
difference in the three forms of governments as these 
departments rest on the Czar or the people. 



142 READER FOR COMING AMERICANS 

Refer to the diagram of the "Banded States." The 
circles disconnected would illustrate the condition of the 
States before the Constitution was adopted. 

Show the students a copy of the Constitution and read 
sections guaranteeing each citizen freedom of speech, of 
religion, a free press, equality before the law and the 
right of franchise. 

Call attention to the written Constitution as an impor- 
tant safeguard of the rights of the people and as pecu- 
liarly American. 




Note. — The circles disconnected would illustrate the condition of the 
States before the Constitution was adopted. 



LESSONS IN GOVERNMENT 143 

II. THE BEGINNINGS OF AMERICAN 
DEMOCRACY 

The beginnings of American democracy are best 
observed in the New England townships. The early 
settlers were largely Puritans from England. They 
were so called because they wished to purify govern- 
ment and church as those then existed in England. 
They came to America as church congregations, 
accompanied by their pastors. The first company 
of men, those who founded the Plymouth Colony, are 
called the Pilgrim Fathers. 

The object of these early immigrants was to form 
a church (with them church and community were 
one and the same) in the management of which they 
would be free to govern themselves without the inter- 
ference of bishops and kings. 

When such a company or congregation came to 
Massachusetts the government of the colony granted 
it a piece of land upon which all could live together 
and attend the same church. This grant of land 
comprised the township. A meeting-house was 
centrally situated and near it was the town pasture, 
or common, with the block-house, or rough fortress 
for defense against the Indians. Around these the 
dwellings gradually clustered into a village. The 
schoolhouse, store, tavern and town house naturally 
followed. Beyond these were the farms, which were 
small in size and within convenient distance. The 
small size of the farms made it possible to bring to- 
gether many families in a compact neighborhood. 



144 READER FOR COMING AMERICANS 

The people forming such a village and tilling the 
soil were fairly equal in social position. All the 
affairs of the congregation were settled in the public 
meeting, which every member of the company could 
attend. For generations these men had been accus- 
tomed to local self-government and to public meetings 
for discussing community affairs. This they were 
bent on maintaining and extending, for it was the 
chief end for which they had crossed the ocean. In 
this way was established, two hundred years ago, a 
kind of government which is the best political train- 
ing school ever invented by a freedom-loving people. 

Questions 

1. What is meant by a New England township? 

2. Did the Puritans come to New England in organ- 
ized groups? 

3. What was their chief purpose in coming to 
America ? 

4. How did the colony deal with future immigrants ? 

5. Describe how towns were built up. 

6. Were the farms large or small? 

7. What about the social rank of the New England 
villagers ? 

8. How did the Puritans prove their love for self- 
government ? 

9. Show the relation of this township system to 
political liberty? 

Hints to Teachers 

Show pictures of Puritans and explain the name to 
the class. 

Tell how membership in a church was necessary in 
order to be a voter or an office holder and read the Second 
Amendment to the Constitution. 



LESSONS IN GOVERNMENT 145 

The Puritans fled from England because bishops and 
kings interfered with their religious freedom ; but this 
did not teach them tolerance — religious tolerance is a 
growth. Tell the story of Roger Williams. 

Give some instances from history of the rigid observ- 
ance of the Puritan Sabbath and the "blue laws" which 
were enacted. 



III. THE NEW ENGLAND TOWNSHIPS 

The government of a New England township 
centers in the town meeting, usually held in the town 
house. All grown men of the township are expected 
to be present to vote. Any one may introduce a 
motion and take part in the discussion. At the town 
meeting measures for the administration of the town 
are discussed and either adopted or rejected; appro- 
priations are made for the public expenses of the town 
and town officers are elected for the }^ear. 

The executive magistrates of the town are called 
selectmen and are from three to nine in number, ac- 
cording to the size and population of the town. 
They issue the call for the town meeting, authorize 
and lay out highways, grant licenses of various kinds 
and impanel jurors. They act as health officers, 
assessors of taxes and overseers of the poor. They 
listen to complaints from the citizens and represent 
the town in law suits affecting it. 

The town clerk keeps records of the transactions at 
the town meeting ; records the births, marriages and 
deaths in the township and issues certificates to 
persons who declare an intention of marriage. He 



146 READER FOR COMING AMERICANS 

records the names of candidates and the number of 
votes for each in the election of State and county 
officers ; he also keeps on record accurate descriptions 
of the position and bounds of public roads in the 
town. 

The treasurer receives and takes care of the money 
coming in from the taxpayers and out of it pays 
the authorized public expenses. He keeps a strict 
account of these transactions and makes a report of 
them each year. 

The constable serves warrants and writs. He pur- 
sues criminals and takes them to jail. He summons 
jurors and sometimes collects the taxes. 

Where the duties of the selectmen are too numerous 
the town chooses assessors of taxes to prepare the 
tax list and overseers of the poor to manage the town 
almshouse and settle questions arising with regard to 
the homeless poor. 

In a New York town the officers are : A supervisor 
(who is a member of the law-making board of the 
county), a town clerk, one or more assessors, one to 
three commissioners of highways, four justices of the 
peace, a town collector, an overseer of the poor and 
constables. The supervisor, town clerk and justices 
constitute a town board, the general duties of which 
correspond somewhat to those of the selectmen in a 
New England town. 

In many of the Middle Atlantic States and those 
of the Central West there prevails a system that is 
a compromise between the New England and Virginia 
systems, in which the town and county share about 
equally in the functions of local government. 




CENTRE. Of DEMOCRACY 



Note.— The object of this figure is to illustrate how the various offices in 
the town government are founded by democracy and are its most simple ex- 
pression in self-government. The off-shoots of the larger branches show the 
duties involved in the office specified. The teacher should build this in the 
presence of the class as suggested in the preface. 



148 READER FOR COMING AMERICANS 

Questions 

1. Where does the government of a New England 
township center? 

2. Who are the voters in such a meeting? 

3. Can any one take part in the discussions? 

4. What are the three things generally done in the 
town meeting? 

5. What are the executive magistrates of a New 
England town called? 

6. How many are they in number? 

7. What are their duties? 

8. What are the town clerk's duties? 

9. What are the duties of the treasurer? 

10. What are the duties of constables? 

11. If the duties of the selectmen are too numerous 
what does the township do? 

Hints to Teachers 

On a map show a township as part of a county. 

Name the officers of your town or city and describe 
their duties. 

Connect these as far as possible with the officers in 
a New England township. 

Show the democratic principles of popular govern- 
ment in the selection of officers and method of their 
appointment. 

The students will be more interested if the lesson is 
illustrated by actual political relations around them. 

Construct a figure like diagram and insert the names 
of the local office holders and specify their duties. 



IV. THE COUNTY 

The county is made up of several townships, as the 
State is made up of counties. A county, like the 
township, is a corporation ; it can hold property, sue 
and be sued. One of the towns is chosen for the 



LESSONS IN GOVERNMENT 149 

county seat, in which the courthouse and jail are 
located. 

The county commissioners, or board of supervisors, 
sustain similar relations to the county as selectmen do 
to the town. They represent the county in law suits ; 
apportion the county taxes among the towns ; lay 
out, alter or discontinue certain highways within the 
county ; have charge of houses of correction or alms- 
houses and erect and keep in repair all county build- 
ings. 

A county treasurer receives and disburses for 
county purposes all funds gathered from taxes and 
fines. 

The county clerk or register of deeds, preserves the 
records of all land titles and transfers of land within 
the county — all deeds and mortgages are registered 
in his office. 

Justices of the peace are chosen by the people or 
appointed by the Governor of the State. Their 
powers vary in the several States but they issue 
warrants, take bail and have civil and criminal juris- 
diction over sundry petty offenses. 

The sheriff must attend all county courts and 
inflict the sentence of the court. He is responsible 
for the preservation of the peace within the county. 

Courts hold regular sessions at the county seat 
and try civil and criminal cases. Counties also have 
probate courts which have jurisdiction over all 
matters relating to wills, administration of estates 
and appointment of guardians. The register, or 
judge of probate, in some States called surrogate, is 
an officer of this court. 



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THZPE.OPLZ ZLICT OTTJCEfc.5 



Note.— This figure is designed to show that the county government is 
based upon the will of the people, that the officers are their servants, and 
that it is only an extension of local self-government over [a ilargen area. 
Build this in the class-room. 



LESSONS IN GOVERNMENT 151 

Questions 

1. Describe the relations between township, county 
and State. 

2. Is the county a corporation? 

3. What is a county seat? 

4. What are the duties of the county commissioners 
or board of supervisors? 

5. What are the duties of a county treasurer? 

6. What are the duties of the county clerk, or regis- 
ter of deeds? 

7. How are justices of the peace chosen and what 
are their duties? 

8. What are the duties of a sheriff? 

9. What cases are discussed in probate court? 

10. What is the political unit in Virginia ? (See foot- 
note to lesson one.) 

1 1 . Give the reasons for this condition. 

Hints to Teachers 

Show on the map how several townships make a county 
and how the counties form the State. 

Specify property owned by the county and if possible 
secure clippings from a newspaper referring to a suit 
brought against the county. 

Show on the map the county seat; show pictures of a 
courthouse, jail, etc. 

Show sample of county tax forms. 

State the annual expenses of the county and tell how 
the money is secured. 

Visit a justice's court; a county court. Show forms 
of warrants, bail bonds, and forms in civil and criminal 
suits. Show forms used in probate court. 



V. PUBLIC EDUCATION 

The beginnings of the system of public education, 
which has been adopted generally throughout the 



152 READER FOR COMING AMERICANS 

country, are seen in the early school committees of 
the New England townships. 

The law of Massachusetts ordered that every town- 
ship containing fifty families should forthwith set up 
a school in which children might be taught to read 
and write ; and that every township containing one 
hundred families should set up a school in which boys 
might be prepared for entering college. 

The school committee or board of trustees has im- 
mediate supervision of the common schools in town or 
city. The members are usually elected for three 
years, one third being chosen annually. They visit 
the schools, manage the school finances, decide as to 
text-books and other supplies, employ the teachers 
and sometimes examine and license the same. In 
most States there is a State superintendent at the 
head of the public school system, and county or 
district superintendents who have general supervision 
of the public schools in their respective fields. They 
examine and license teachers, arrange the boundaries 
of school districts, condemn unfit schoolhouses, etc. 
Teachers' licenses or certificates are required in all 
States, but the forms vary. In New York a be- 
ginner's license (third grade) is good for one year 
only. A State license, given by the State superin- 
tendent, is good anywhere in the State, but may be 
revoked. In most cities teachers are appointed for 
one year, but where their services are satisfactory 
they are continued during good behavior. 
Questions 

1. How did the New England township schools in- 
fluence the educational system of the country? 



LESSONS IN GOVERNMENT 153 

2. Tell how the Massachusetts laws provide for pub- 
lic education. 

3. How is a school committee or board chosen and 
how long do the members serve? 

4. State the duties of the school committee. 

5. By whom are the public school teachers chosen ? 

6. What about the tenure of office of the teacher? 

7. What can you tell about the duties of school super- 
intendents ? 

Hints to Teachers 

Call attention to the local school system. 

Secure a list of the school committee, board or trustees ; 
ascertain how often and where they meet. 

Give the names of State and county superintendents, 
local superintendent of city schools, principal of the 
high school, principal of grammar or ward school. 

Ask the pupils to name the teachers they know. 
Explain how they are appointed. 

Explain the relation of the various grades to the high 
school. 

Explain how the books and supplies for the schools 
are purchased and how the teachers and principals are 
responsible to the board. 

Tell the students how much is annually spent for 
public instruction in the local town or city, in the State, 
in the Nation (approximately). 



VI. THE CITIZEN AND THE GOVERNMENT 

When thousands of men live together in a com- 
munity certain relations must be observed if peace 
and propriety are to be secured. Streets must be 
mapped out, paved or graded, kept clean and in 
repair. Schoolhouses must be built and teachers 
employed. Criminals must be arrested, tried and 



154 READER FOR COMING AMERICANS 

punished. Property rights must be defined and de- 
fended. The health of the people must be protected 
and the dependent members of the community cared 
for. 

The people as a whole cannot attend to these 
duties ; hence they come together and select certain 
men of their number to whom they delegate various 
powers — to levy and collect taxes, to make necessary 
improvements, to maintain law and order and attend 
to all the varied interests of the inhabitants.* 

The size of the village, town or city determines the 
number and duties of the officers. In general, one 
group of men is chosen to make laws, another to 
enforce the laws and still another to interpret the 
laws. Thus we have councilmen who pass ordinances 
and fix the rate of taxation, policemen who maintain 
order, a treasurer to take care of the money, a health 
board to look after the public health, and such other 
officers and boards as may be needed for the proper 
administration of public offices. 

These officers, elected by the people in town, village 
or city, are, taken together, sometimes called the 
government. But government in a democracy may 
be best defined as all male inhabitants of twenty-one 
or over who have a voice in choosing men to serve 
them in office. 



*Officers are usually selected and voted for by what are called political 
parties, of which there are at least two leading ones. A short time before 
the election the voters of each party in a ward or district come together, in 
a primary or caucus, to select delegates to a city or town convention. Such 
convention nominates men for the various offices to be filled. This "ticket," 
prepared as a printed ballot, is voted by members of the party at the polls 
on election day. The men getting a majority of the votes cast are declared 
elected. This same method is extended to include the county and the State. 



LESSONS IN GOVERNMENT 155 

Questions 

1. Tell why government is necessary. 

2. Mention some functions in a city which the people 
as a whole cannot attend to. 

3. How do the people delegate these powers to cer- 
tain representatives? 

4. What three groups of officers are there in a city 
government ? 

5. What are the duties of councilmen? 

6. What are the duties of policemen? 

7. What are the duties of a board of health? 

8. Name some other officers in a city. 

9. Define government in a democracy. 

Hints to Teachers 

Secure a copy of the by-laws of the city and show to 
the class the ordinances governing the municipality. 

Obtain a map of the city and by marks, color disks, 
or pins show the schoolhouses, fire stations and other 
city buildings. 

Show how much and what kind of property the city 
owns and the use made of the same. 

Show the three departments of the city government 
corresponding to the three departments mentioned in 
Lesson I. 

From a good dictionary discover in how many senses 
the word "government" is used. 

Find how much it takes annually to run the city 
government, the State government, the Federal govern- 
ment. 



VII. WHO CAN AND WHO CANNOT VOTE 

Not all male inhabitants of twenty-one years and 
over in the United States can vote. Aliens, or foreign- 
born persons who are not naturalized, are given cer- 



156 READER FOR COMING AMERICANS 

tain civil rights, such as protection of life and liberty, 
of health and property, but they have no voice in the 
affairs of the Nation. Indians, living in tribal rela- 
tions and paying no taxes, cannot vote. Criminals, 
idiots, paupers and insane persons are also debarred. 
The yellow peoples of Asia, such as Chinese, Japanese, 
Koreans, etc., cannot vote, for the privilege of natur- 
alization is denied them. United States soldiers and 
sailors are disqualified in some of the States for the 
reason that they are not considered citizens of the 
State. Also in some States citizens may lose the 
right to vote upon conviction of bribery, betting, 
dueling, bigamy, polygamy, etc. 

All native-born males, sons of American citizens, 
have the right to vote when they come to their ma- 
jority, but this right can only be exercised by com- 
pliance with State regulations. The United States 
confers the privilege of citizenship upon both natives 
and foreign-born, but the right to vote comes from 
the State in which the citizen resides. All States 
insist upon a resident qualification, the time varying 
from six months to two years. Hence a citizen of 
Pennsylvania moving to New York cannot exercise 
his voting power until he has the resident qualifica- 
tion. A similar qualification (but with shorter time) 
is required when a citizen moves from place to place 
in the same State. In four States women twenty-one 
years of age may vote. 

The United States laws provide for the naturaliza- 
tion of aliens of the white races, and more than five 
million foreign-born persons are now voters in the 
country. The naturalized citizen has all the rights 



158 READER FOR COMING AMERICANS 

of the native-born save that he cannot become Presi- 
dent or Vice-President of the United States. 

Questions 

1. How has the United States arranged to give the 
foreign-born resident a voice in our government? 

2. What nationalities are refused naturalization? 

3. State the case of the North American Indian. 

4. Is citizenship a birthright? 

5. Can all persons born in the United States vote? 

6. What classes of citizens are disfranchised? 

7. Why cannot United States soldiers vote? 

8. Can women vote? 

9- Give some qualifications required of voters by 
the States. 

10. Name certain things disqualifying voters in 
some States. 

Hints to Teachers 

Show how it is possible for a man to be a citizen and 
not able to vote because of State regulations. 

Secure a copy of the regulations of your own State 
and explain them to the students. 

Compare the freedom with which the franchise is 
given in America with the restrictions in force in Euro- 
pean countries. 

Let the students tell how the people take part in gov- 
ernment in their countries. 

Do European countries have a way by which citizens 
of other countries can be naturalized, or is naturalization 
a process originated in America? 

Why are Chinese, Japanese and Koreans excluded 
from naturalization? 

Show samples of first and second naturalization 
papers. 



LESSONS IN GOVERNMENT 159 

VIII. GOVERNMENT AND PROPERTY IN- 
TERESTS 

John Smith is purchasing a piece of land from 
Robinson. Smith employs an attorney or a title 
guarantee company to search Robinson's title to the 
property. The attorney or title company examines 
the records in the proper office to see that there are 
no legal claims which are not accounted for — that all 
taxes have been paid, that no tax deeds have been 
taken and that no mortgages, mechanics' hens or 
judgments are filed against it. When the attorney 
tells Smith that Robinson's title is clear and that 
the property has no encumbrances, Smith pays the 
sum agreed upon to Robinson and takes a deed, trans- 
ferring the property from Robinson to Smith. Smith 
takes the deed to the county seat and has it recorded. 

These men are able to transact this business because 
the government is only society organized. The in- 
terests of the property owner and that of the govern- 
ment are identical, because individual property can 
be secured only when the government has power to 
govern. Efficiency in government means that there 
is back of it the power to enforce laws, to put down 
crime within the State and to cope with enemies from 
without. 

Defined, "Government is society organized for 
political purposes, exercising its authority over a 
prescribed geographical area." 

Questions 
1 . What gives a man title to real estate ? 



160 READER FOR COMING AMERICANS 

2. Why should a buyer of real estate employ a 
lawyer ? 

3. What does a lawyer examine? 

4. What do you mean by a clear title to land? 

5. Why should a buyer register the deed he gets? 

6. What gives security to men in their property 
rights ? 

7. How are the interests of government and indi- 
vidual owners identical? 

8. What does efficiency of government mean? 

Hints to Teachers 

Secure blank forms of deeds and mortgages and show 
how these are recorded in the courthouse or the clerk's 
office and that it would be impossible to secure the rights 
of real property if this care were not taken by the gov- 
ernment. 

Contrast insecurity of property and personal rights 
in certain countries with the security given in strong 
well-organized governments. 

Take the class to the record office. Show them how 
the deeds are recorded, how judgments, etc., are entered 
and how important it is to keep an accurate record of 
these. 

Quote from the State law the way in which a man pur- 
chasing a piece of property may lose title to the same 
by neglecting to record the deed. 

Inform the students regarding a mechanics' lien, tax 
lien, etc. 



IX. WHY TAXES ARE IMPOSED 

Jacqua has built a house. Soon after the house 
is finished Jones, the assessor, comes to estimate its 
value and enter the amount upon his book. In the 
course of a year Jacqua has to pay taxes on his 



LESSONS IN GOVERNMENT 161 

property. In the statement he finds various items, 
such as school tax, road and bridge tax, poor tax, 
city tax, county tax and State tax. Jacqua com- 
plains and says, "All this tax money is for nothing." 
But suppose there were no roads or bridges, no 
schools, no police, no officers of any kind in city or 
county and no means to care for the poor and de- 
pendent ; how would Jacqua get provisions to his 
home, send his children to school, secure protection 
for his property and provide for those who cannot 
provide for themselves? If we want books and 
teachers in the schools, patrolmen to guard the 
streets and our homes, men to work on roads and 
bridges, and officers to look after the health of the 
city ; if laws are to be enforced and order preserved 
in city and county, then men who give their time to 
the performance of these duties must be paid. 

Hence taxes, taken from Jacqua and other citi- 
zens, furnish the means to pay these government 
officials and to make various public improvements 
that may be required. 

Taxes may be defined as that part of the private 
property of citizens which is taken by the government 
to defray the expenses incurred in providing public 
benefits to all the people, who are a part of that 
government. 

Questions 

1. What are an assessor's duties? 

2. How often are taxes paid? 

S. Mention various kinds of taxes. 
4. Name some other officers employed as public 
servants. 



162 READER FOR COMING AMERICANS 

5. How do the police earn their money? 

6. What do the road commissioners do? 

7. What are the duties of a judge? Should he be 
paid for his work? 

8. What becomes of the money collected in taxes? 
9- Give a definition of taxes. 

Hints to Teachers 

Secure copies of the various forms of blanks used in 
collecting taxes in city and county. 

If possible get a tax collector to come before the class 
and explain his methods. 

Tell how taxes are paid, why there is a penalty for 
non-payment and how a municipality can assess the 
property for taxation. 

Tell who are exempt from taxation — widows, some 
war veterans, etc. 

Show how some people work out their taxes on the 
roads or otherwise. 



X. DIFFERENT KINDS OF TAXES 

All taxes are fixed by the law-making departments 
— in Nation, State, county, city, or town. Both 
persons and things are taxed. The personal, poll or 
head tax, never exceeding $2.00, is assessed on all 
males over twenty years of age. In some States the 
head tax is not enforced. All lands and buildings 
must pay taxes except such as are exempt by law, 
namely, churches, graveyards, educational and char- 
itable institutions and public buildings. These are 
called real estate taxes. Taxes are also imposed on 
personal property such as money, stocks, bonds, ships, 
wagons, furniture, etc. The laws usually exempt 



LESSONS IN GOVERNMENT 163 

household furniture to the amount of several hundred 
dollars. United States bonds are not subject to tax. 

The assessors can readily estimate the value of real 
estate, but each citizen is expected to render a true 
statement of his personal property such as stocks, 
bonds, horses, cows, etc. 

The town being part of the county and the county 
part of the State, the tax payers must bear their 
equal portion of the expenses of the county and State 
administrations. Hence we have county and State 
taxes although they are much smaller than those for 
town and city purposes. It is thus seen that the 
money needed for the government expenses of State, 
county, town and city are given by the people through 
the tax system. 

The expenses of the National government are 
largely paid from tariff duties on goods brought here 
from foreign countries and excise duties paid by 
manufacturers upon goods made in this country. 
Income and inheritance taxes and various license fees 
are also employed by both National and State 
governments. 

Questions 

1. How would you classify as taxable property 
houses and lands? Bonds and stocks? 

2. What is a poll tax and how much is it in your 
State? 

3. What lands and buildings are exempt from taxa- 
tion ? 

4. What personal property is exempt? 

5. How does the State find out the amount of a 
man's personal property? 

6. Why should you pay county and State taxes ? 



164 READER FOR COMING AMERICANS 

7. From what do the county and State obtain a large 
part of their revenue? 

8. If a corporation pays a tax does this in any way 
affect the people? 

9. Can the city, State or Nation collect a dollar in 
taxes without taking it from the people? 

Hints to Teachers 

Tell the class why persons who are not citizens some- 
times pay taxes. They need the protection of govern- 
ment the same as others and the benefits of a well-organ- 
ized government are theirs so long as they remain in the 
country. 

On the map of your town or city mark the various 
kinds of real estate which are exempt from taxation. 
Why are United States bonds exempt? 

Show how the county derives a large part of its 
revenues from fines and costs at court and how the State 
obtains much of its revenue from corporations. 

Secure an estimate of the amount of money required 
annually to conduct the municipal government of your 
town or city. 

Secure a sample of the blank used to register personal 
property. 

Call attention again to the amount spent in adminis- 
trating the people's business. 

Show how the United States government gets money 
by the stamps found on boxes of tobacco, cigars, etc. 



XL THE CITY 

A municipality is an organized community created 
by charter secured from the State. The larger of 
these communities are called cities ; the smaller ones 
are called villages and in some States boroughs and 
towns. The population required to obtain a city 



LESSONS IN GOVERNMENT 165 

charter varies in different States — in the East it is 
seldom less than 10,000. A city or village is gov- 
erned by certain rules or laws made by the municipal 
government and called ordinances. 

A city government consists of a council, a mayor 
and various other executive and court officers. The 
council may consist of one or of two bodies and has 
various names as board of aldermen, city or common 
council, etc. Members of the council are elected by 
the people, from one to three being chosen from each 
ward or district. The council meets regularly and, 
under charter limitations, enacts city ordinances, 
levies taxes, makes appropriations of the city funds 
and determines all matters relating to public im- 
provements, granting of franchises and licenses, etc. 
The mayor is the chief executive and is charged with 
enforcing the laws and with the general oversight of 
the city government. He is elected by the people and 
for a term of from one to six years, according to the 
provisions of the charter. The mayor usually has a 
limited veto power over the acts of the council. 
Besides the mayor are such officers as city attorney, 
city judge, assessors, street commissioner, overseer 
of the poor, etc., generally elected by the people but 
sometimes appointed by the mayor with approval of 
the council. 

The city government has its own system of courts, 
the judges usually being elected by the people. 
These courts punish violations of the city ordinances 
and breaches of the peace and have a limited juris- 
diction in civil and criminal cases, there being a right 
of appeal except in minor cases. 



166 READER FOR COMING AMERICANS 

Questions 

1. Where does the city obtain its charter? 

2. Why does a city need rules and regulations ? 

3. Name the usual officers in a municipal government. 

4. Tell how the mayor is chosen. 

5. How is the city council usually constituted? 

6. Describe some of the duties of the council. 

7. Name some of the departments of a city govern- 



ment. 



Hints to Teachers 



A picture of the mayor should be shown to the class. 

The students should be taken to the city council to 
witness the transaction of the municipal business; also 
attend a session of the police court and a trial in a 
justice's court. 

Find out in what criminal suits the jurisdiction of the 
justice of the peace and the judge of the police court 
is final. 

Name the various departments in the local city govern- 
ment and tell how the heads of departments are chosen. 

A copy of the city charter should be shown the class. 



XII. WHY CITIES HAVE LAWS 

If thousands of persons are to dwell together in 
safety and comfort there must be law and regulation. 
There must be adequate police protection, a fire de- 
partment, a board of health with power to promote 
sanitary conditions and to prevent the spread of 
disease. Usually there should be a public water 
system and its necessary companion, a system of 
sewerage. 

The streets are owned by the people, who should see 
that they are well paved, drained and kept clean. 



LESSONS IN GOVERNMENT 167 

Houses and markets with the city food supply should 
be carefully inspected and the poor and dependent 
must be cared for. School buildings must be built 
and equipped and teachers employed. The public 
buildings should be architecturally beautiful. Public 
parks should be roomy and well kept and there should 
be public playgrounds for children and public baths, 
and if needed a public wash house and laundry. Pub- 
lic monuments should be genuine works of art. Un- 
sightly or vulgar advertisements, poles and wires or 
nuisances of any kind should be prohibited. The 
"city beautiful" should be the aim of every munici- 
pality and every citizen should be interested in mak- 
ing his town a good place to dwell in. 

Questions 

1. What relation have laws to the comfort of the 
people ? 

2. Why should a city have police protection and a 
fire department? 

3. Name some of the duties of a board of health. 

4. Who own the streets of the city? How should 
they be kept? 

5. Whose duty is it to care for the poor and de- 
pendent ? 

6. Why should a city look after its water supply ? 

7. Who is to look after the education of the chil- 
dren ? 

8. What should be the character of the public 
buildings ? 

9. Why are unsightly advertisements, poles, wires, 
etc., undesirable? 

10. Should a city provide playgrounds, bath houses, 
etc., for the people? 



168 READER FOR COMING AMERICANS 

Hints to Teachers 

Call attention to the importance of the board of 
health as related to food inspection, public sanitation 
and health conditions of public and private buildings. 

Call attention to the water supply, the lighting and 
sewer systems. Explain how they are managed, and 
why some cities own and operate them for the common 
good. 

Why do some cities have a lower death rate than others, 
although natural conditions are the same ? 

Clean streets and good sewer system, pure water and 
pure food are promoters of health and wealth. 

Pictures of playgrounds, public baths, public library 
and school buildings will be helpful. 



XIII. MAINTAINING ORDER 

The chief executive officer of the city is the mayor ; 
of the county, the sheriff ; of the State, the Governor ; 
of the United States, the President. It is the duty 
of each of these, in his respective sphere, to see that 
peace is maintained and that the laws are enforced. 

If there is disturbance in the city the mayor will, 
through the police officers, arrest and punish the 
disturbers. Should disorder grow, he can call out 
the entire police force of the city to suppress it. If 
the resistance to the law is beyond the power of the 
police, the mayor appeals to the sheriff and this officer 
can call out the power of the county (posse comi- 
tatus) to quell it. Should the disorder become an 
insurrection, the sheriff may apply to the Governor, 
who controls the State militia ; the Governor in turn 
may appeal to the President of the United States, 



LESSONS IN GOVERNMENT 169 

who, as commander-in-chief can draw on the regular 
army and navy of the Federal Government. Thus all 
the power of the city, the county, the State and the 
Nation is available for the suppression of disorder in 
a single locality. 

Questions 

1. Give the titles of the chief executives in city, 
county, State and Nation. 

2. What is the duty of each of these in his sphere? 

3. How does the mayor put down a disturbance in 
the city? 

4. If a disturbance passes beyond his control upon 
whom can he call ? 

5. Give the various steps in suppressing disorder 
until we come to the chief executive of the Nation. 

6. How many men are there in the regular army 
of the United States? 

7. Why do we have so few soldiers as compared to 
European governments? 

8. What are the resources of the United States in 
case of insurrection? 

Hints to Teachers 

Call attention to the military system of the United 
States — the State militia and the regular army. 

On the map show some nearby places where regular 
troops are stationed; also show where companies of 
troops are stationed in Alaska, Hawaii, Porto Rico, etc. 

Get pictures of encampment of your State militia and 
of some of the United States army posts or camps. 

Explain how America maintains peace with one regular 
soldier to 1000 of its population, while the burden of 
militarism in Europe is very heavy. 

Show how with the small standing army the duty of 
maintaining the peace is placed upon each citizen. 



170 READER FOR COMING AMERICANS 
XIV. STATE GOVERNMENT 

The United States is a country made up of many 
separate States. At first the number was thirteen, 
now it is forty-six. A State has well defined bound- 
ary lines and within these lines it is a limited sovereign 
power — limited by the Constitution of the United 
States. 

The State has three departments of government : 

(1) The Legislative, which consists of two houses ; 
the upper, called the Senate, and the lower, called 
variously the House of Representatives, the Assembly, 
etc. The members of both houses are elected by the 
people ; the senators are fewer in number and their 
term of office longer than that of members of the 
lower house. They hold office for from two to six 
years, while the tenure of office of representatives is 
for one or two years. 

(2) The Executive. The Governor is the chief 
executive of a State and is chosen by the people for 
a term of years. He is charged with the general 
supervision of the affairs of the State, recommends 
needful legislation in his annual message to the law- 
making body and, in nearly every State, has a limited 
veto over legislative action. He is commander-in- 
chief of the State militia and can pardon criminals 
convicted under the State laws. 

The Governor is assisted by certain officers, vary- 
ing in number and name in the different States, who 
form his board of advisers. These officers are usually 
chosen by the people though sometimes appointed by 



LESSONS IN GOVERNMENT 



171 



the Governor. Each has his specific duties and the 
list generally comprises the following : 

A lieutenant-governor, who presides over the senate 
and succeeds to the office of Governor in case of the 
death or absence of that officer. 




CHART 5H0W1MQ KIEV YORK 5TATE GOVERNMENT 



A secretary of state, who is chief clerk of the ex- 
ecutive department and custodian of all State papers 
and journals. 



172 READER FOR COMING AMERICANS 

A comptroller, who manages the financial business 
of the government. 

A treasurer, who receives and pays out State 
moneys. 

An attorney-general, who is the law officer of the 
State. 

A superintendent of public instruction, who is the 
head of the State public school system. 

Other departments are often supervised by boards 
or commissions, as the State board of health, of 
prisons, of insurance, etc. 

(3) The Judicial. The courts, or the law-inter- 
preting branch of the State governments, are treated 
in another lesson. 

Questions 

1. How many States form our Federal Union? 

2. Define a State. What is the chief executive 
called ? 

3. Why does the Governor write an annual message? 

4. Explain some of the powers of the Governor. 

5. Name some of the official advisers of the Governor. 

6. What are the duties of the secretary of state? 
Of the attorney-general ? 

7. Name other departments of the State government. 

8. Tell what you know of the State Legislature — its 
composition and duties. 

9. Tell how the members of the two houses are 
chosen and for how long. 

Hints to Teachers 

Show the State boundaries and explain how one State 
cannot interfere with the affairs of an adjoining State, 
for each must respect the sovereign power of the other. 



LESSONS IN GOVERNMENT 173 

Describe how the States by common understanding aid 
each other in bringing an escaped criminal to justice. 

If a man commits a crime in Pennsylvania and crosses 
the State line into New York the authorities in New 
York will cooperate with those of Pennsylvania in having 
the man returned for trial. Explain the process of ex- 
tradition. 

Show how State laws differ. A man convicted of 
murder in Pennsylvania is hanged; in New York he is 
electrocuted; in Vermont he is imprisoned for life. 
What is law in one State may not be law in another. 
Also the processes of administration vary in different 
States. 



XV. STATE AND LOCAL GOVERNMENTS 

Self-government is the foundation stone of the 
Republic and it is guaranteed to every State in the 
Union. The State exercises general supervision over 
city, township and county. 

The State is a limited sovereign power but it 
seldom seeks to tie the hands of the lesser divisions. 
The local governments are allowed to manage their 
own affairs and the supervision exercised by the 
State is only such as is needed to harmonize the work- 
ing of the county, town and municipal governments. 
Thus by local self-government it is possible for all 
American citizens to participate in the management 
of public affairs ; this arrangement both creates and 
nourishes a public spirit and acquaints the people 
with matters of public interest. 

The sovereign powers of the State are many. The 
State regulates all civil and religious rights of the 




SELT- GOVERNMENT 



LESSONS IN GOVERNMENT 175 

citizen ; it cares for the education of the people ; it 
regulates and prescribes the right of suffrage, the 
rules of marriage, and the legal rights between hus- 
band and wife, parent and child, master and servant, 
citizen and citizen. The laws governing business 
transactions are provided by it ; partners in business, 
insurance companies, those borrowing or paying 
loans and all persons engaged in trade and commerce 
look to the State laws for protection. All contracts, 
all corporations, all private property are in a sense 
under the control of the State. All crimes against 
person and property (except where the United States 
is involved) are under the jurisdiction of the State. 
The power of the State touches all the relations of 
life, and nine laws out of every ten touching the life 
of the citizen are laid down by the State government. 

Questions 

1. What is the foundation stone of a Republic? 

2. How is self-government secured to every State 
of the Union? 

3. How is it secured to every municipality? 

4. How is it possible for every citizen to take part 
in public affairs? 

5. Give instances of the restrictive power of the State 
on the city. 

6. Illustrate the sovereign power of the State. 

7. If a criminal flees to an adjoining State how can 
he be brought back? 

8. Can a State prosecute a man for violating a United 
States law? 

Hints to Teachers 

On the map point out the location of the State capital, 
and show a picture of the capitol building. 



176 READER FOR COMING AMERICANS 

Obtain a copy of the State constitution and explain 
how the State government limits the powers of the 
municipalities, in contracting debts and regarding taxes, 
schools, licenses, law suits, etc. 

Illustrate by a concrete case of a private citizen 
appealing to the State law to prevent the municipality 
from carrying out what it had planned to do. 

Give certain instances of municipal self-government 
showing how largely affairs are in the hands of the 
people notwithstanding the general supervision of the 
State: raising of taxes, improvement of streets, public 
buildings, choosing of local officers, granting of licenses 
and franchises, etc. 



XVI. THE ADMINISTRATION OF JUSTICE 

In most of the States there are four grades of 
courts : 

(1) Justices of the peace try petty criminal of- 
fenses and civil suits for small amounts. They also 
hold preliminary hearings of persons accused of 
serious crimes and if evidence warrants hold the 
persons for the action of the grand jury. The 
mayor's or police court in the city has similar juris- 
diction. 

(2) The county and municipal courts hear, 
appeals from the lower courts and have original juris- 
diction over a more important class of civil and 
criminal cases. 

(3) The superior court hears appeals from the 
lower courts and has original jurisdiction over still 
more important cases and over wider areas of 
country ; it does not confine its sessions to one place. 



LESSONS IN GOVERNMENT 177 

(4) The supreme court's chief function is to 
decide questions of law upon appeals from the lower 
courts. 

However, the court systems vary greatly in the 
different States and similar courts are known by dif- 
ferent names — in New York, number three above is 
called the supreme court and number four, the court 
of appeals. 

The judges in most of the States are chosen by the 
people and hold office for a stated term of years ; 
those in the higher courts have a longer tenure of 
office. 

Cases in both civil and criminal courts are tried by 
a jury of twelve men, selected by lot, who after 
hearing the evidence on both sides determine the 
innocence or guilt of the accused. This is a trial or 
"petit" jury. 

A grand jury consists of from twelve to twenty- 
three men, chosen to inquire into certain cases pre- 
sented to it and to decide whether or not the suspected 
person is to be held for trial. If the required number 
of jurors is satisfied from the evidence of the truth 
of the accusation, "a true bill" is found and the case 
is sent to the proper court for trial ; if not, the case 
is "ignored." 

Questions 

1. How many grades of courts are there in most of 
the States? 

2. What part in a process of law do the justice's 
court and the mayor's court play? Explain the relation- 
ship between these courts and the county court ; between 
the county court and the superior court. 



178 READER FOR COMING AMERICANS 

3. Where are the sessions of the superior court held? 

4. Explain the chief function of the supreme court. 

5. Are the names and functions of the courts the 
same in all the States ? 

6. How are the judges chosen? 

7. What is a trial or "petit" jury? 

8. Describe the composition and duties of a grand 
jury. 

Hints to Teachers 

The two diagrams show the processes of civil and 
criminal suits. There may be a slight difference in the 
procedure in different States. Show the charts to an 
attorney and he will tell you if the diagram outlined 
agrees with the procedure in your State. 

Use the chart as a guide. Explain the process by 
building up your chart step by step on the blackboard. 
In this way the pupils will get a clearer idea of the 
relation of the several courts to each other. 

The class may be taken to the various courts to witness 
the conduct of the trials. 

Explain how the jurors are chosen and show a form 
used to notify a man that he must act as a juror. 

Explanation of Diagram (Civil Suits) 

Many law cases start in the justice's or police courts. 
These courts have jurisdiction in suits from the lowest 
sum up to $300. If the amount is less than $5.33 the 
judgment of the court is final, except in special cases 
when the justice must send the case for review to a 
higher court. 

If the suit is for more than $5.33 an appeal may be 
taken to the county court. In such instance record is 
made in the office of the chief or county clerk and it 
is passed on for trial. 

Cases for $300 or more may originate in the county 
court. Either party to the suit may appeal from the 



ADMINISTRATION OT .JUSTICE 




PROCESS 07 CIVIL SUITS 



180 READER FOR COMING AMERICANS 

decision of the county court, when the case passes up to 
the superior court, where it is reviewed. If the judgment 
of the lower court is sustained the case ends; if reversed 
the case goes back for re-trial. 

If the case involves $1500 or more an appeal may be 
taken to the supreme court. If the judgment of the 
lower court is sustained the case ends. If reversed it 
goes back for re-trial. 

Explanation of Diagram (Criminal Cases) 

Prosecution usually begins in the justice's or police 
courts. If a case has no merits it is dismissed. If it 
warrants judgment the judge can commit the man to 
jail for thirty days or fine him not to exceed $10. 

If the offense be a statutory one the judge puts the 
man under bail and returns the case to court. It goes 
first to the office of the clerk of the county court (county 
clerk) and from there to the district attorney where it is 
placed with other cases originating in his office. 

All cases from the district attorney's office go to the 
grand jury, which decides whether or not the evidence 
presented warrants a trial; if they return a "true bill" 
the case is tried; if not, the case is ignored. The grand 
jury itself may present a bill if it is thought the ends 
of justice so demand. 

All true bills are returned to the office of the district 
attorney who takes them to the court for trial. Surety 
cases also go up from the same office. 

If tried in county court the case may be decided or 
nolle prosequi (when the plaintiff gives up the prosecu- 
tion). Either party to the suit may appeal which, if 
granted, takes the case to the superior court for review. 
If the judgment of the lower court is sustained the suit 
ends; if not it is returned for re-trial. 

An appeal may be taken to the supreme court, where 
the procedure is similar. 




CouR.5r of criminal Casis 



182 READER FOR COMING AMERICANS 
XVII. CONGRESS 

Congress is the legislative body of the National 
Government ; it consists of two branches, the upper, 
called the Senate, and the lower, called the House of 
Representatives. The members of the lower house, 
commonly called congressmen, are elected by the 
people, the number from each State being based on 
the population. The senators are chosen by the leg- 
islatures of the several States, each State, whether 
large or small, being entitled to two. Representa- 
tives are chosen for two years, senators for six. At 
each election one third of the seats in the Senate and 
all the seats in the lower house become vacant. Per- 
sons entitled to vote for members of the State legis- 
lature may vote for members of Congress. A candi- 
date for the lower house must be twenty-five years of 
age, a citizen of the United States for seven years, 
and a voter in the State he is to represent. A candi- 
date for senator must be thirty years of age, a citizen 
of the United States for nine years and a voter in 
the State he is to represent. 

The election for representatives is held on the 
Tuesday following the first Monday in November, 
but the men chosen do not take their seats until 
December of the following year. However, the new 
Congress may be called in extra session on or after 
the fourth of March following the election. Each 
house is the final judge of the election of its members, 
enacts rules of procedure and may punish or expel a 
member. 

Senators and representatives receive a stated 



LESSONS IN GOVERNMENT 183 

salary and "mileage" from the Federal treasury. 
Members are not subject to arrest during attendance 
in Congress except for treason, felony or breach of 
the peace. They may not be called in question in 
any other place for any speech or debate in Congress. 
The Vice-President is the presiding officer of the 
Senate and can vote in case of a tie. The presiding 
officer of the House of Representatives is called the 
Speaker and is chosen by the House itself. He 
appoints the committees and interprets the rules and 
is thus the most influential member in Congress. In 
the government he is considered next in power to the 
President. 

Questions 

1 What is Congress? 

2. Of how many houses does it consist? 

3. By whom are the members in the lower house 
chosen ? 

4. What bodies choose the members of the upper 
house ? 

5. Describe the basis of representation of each house. 

6. For how long is a senator chosen? A represen- 
tative ? 

7. What proportion of the senators are chosen at 
one time? How many of the representatives? 

8. Name the qualifications necessary for a repre- 
sentative. For a senator. 

Q. If the election of a candidate to Congress is 
questioned who is to decide ? 

10. Can members be arrested while attending 
Congress ? 

11. Who is the presiding officer of the Senate? 

12. What is the presiding officer of the House of 
Representatives called ? 

13. What gives this officer great power in Congress? 



Onconstitutionck I 



Constitutional 




" HOW LAWS ARE HADE IN CONG,RE5b 



LESSONS IN GOVERNMENT 185 

Hints to Teachers 

Use the diagram, How laws are made in Congress. 

Show how bills may originate in either house save 
only those pertaining to revenue, which must originate in 
the lower house. If a bill passes one house it goes to 
the other for discussion. If it passes the second house 
with no amendments it goes to the President. If it is 
amended it returns to the house in which it originated. 
If the amendments are accepted it goes to the President. 
If the amendments are not accepted a joint committee of 
both houses is formed by which the bill is discussed and 
an attempt made to come to an agreement by compromise. 
If the report of the joint committee is accepted by the two 
houses the bill goes to the President. If the President 
approves the bill he signs it and it goes to the Secretary 
of State and becomes a law. If it is constitutionally 
questioned it is submitted to the Supreme Court for its 
decision. If the President disapproves the bill he returns 
it to Congress with his reasons; this is called a veto. If 
each house then passes the bill by a two-thirds majority 
it becomes a law notwithstanding the President's dis- 
approval. A bill may become a law by the President 
holding it ten days without returning it to Congress. If a 
bill is passed within ten days of adjournment and the 
President holds it the bill cannot become a law. This 
is called a "pocket veto." 

A copy of the Congressional Record should be shown 
the class. Visits should be made to a primary, and on 
election day to the polls, to see the operation of voting. 



XVIII. THE PRESIDENT AND HIS CABINET 

The President is the chief executive of the Nation. 
The candidate for this office must be native born, not 
less than thirty-five years of age and have been four- 
teen years a resident of the United States. The term 



186 READER FOR COMING AMERICANS 

of office is four years, but he may be re-elected. 
There is no precedent for a second re-election. The 
President is commander-in-chief of the United States 
army and navy. He can, by and with the consent 
of the Senate, make treaties with foreign powers. 
He appoints ambassadors, ministers and consuls to 
foreign countries and, in the home government, 
appoints the heads of the departments, judges of the 
United States courts and a large number of revenue 
and postal officers. The more important presidential 
appointments must be confirmed by the Senate. The 
President has power to pardon persons convicted of 
offenses under the United States laws. 

In annual and special messages to Congress the 
President states the conditions of national affairs, 
including all departments of the government, and 
suggests or advises such action as he deems wise. 

The heads of nine departments of government form 
the President's cabinet and meet at his call as a 
board of advisers : 

(1) The Secretary of State is the secretary for 
foreign affairs and the chief adviser of the President. 
He is the head of the diplomatic and consular service 
and the medium of communication between his govern- 
ment and representatives of foreign countries and the 
executives of the several States. 

(2) The Secretary of the Treasury supervises the 
financial business of the government, including the 
collection of customs and excise taxes, the coinage 
and safe keeping of moneys, the national banks, etc. 

(3) The Secretary of War has charge of army 
affairs, including enlistments, equipment and food 



LESSONS IN GOVERNMENT 187 

supplies, transportation, etc., and the management of 
the United States Military Academy at West Point. 

(4) The Postmaster-General has supervision of 
all post offices and the transportation of the mails. 

(5) The Secretary of the Interior has charge of 
the public lands, patents, pensions, Indian affairs, the 
reclamation of desert lands, etc. 

(6) The Attorney-General is the legal adviser of 
the government. 

(7) The Secretary of the Navy has general 
supervision of naval affairs, including the construc- 
tion of war vessels and the management of the Naval 
Academy at Annapolis. 

(8) The Secretary of Agriculture promotes in 
many ways the agricultural interests of the country, 
including the national forestry and weather services. 

(9) The Secretary of Commerce and Labor en- 
courages the industrial and commercial interests of 
the country and has direct charge of the coast survey, 
lighthouse service, immigration, fisheries and the 
census. 

Questions 

1. Name the chief executive of the Nation. 

2. What qualifications are necessary in a candidate 
for President? 

3. Can 'a man of foreign birth become President? 
Can he become Vice-President ? Give a good reason why 
he should not be elected as Vice-President. 

4. Name some of the powers of the President. 

5. Name some United States officers that the Presi- 
dent appoints. 

6. The approval of what body is usually necessary? 

7. What can you tell about the President's message ? 



LESSONS IN GOVERNMENT 189 

8. Describe the President's cabinet — what persons 
compose it ? 

9- Describe the specific duties of several of these 
officers. 

10. Should the cabinet officers be capable and honest 
men ? Why ? 

Hints to Teachers 

Show a picture of the President. 

Tell how the President may be elected and not be 
chosen by a majority of the voters in the United States. 
It might be well to explain the original plan of choosing 
presidential electors and how the people now choose the 
President. 

Contrast the powers of the President of the United 
States with those of the King of England or the Czar 
of Russia. 

Tell how the choice of President and Vice-President 
may devolve upon Congress. 

Show the class a ballot used for the presidential 
election. 

Explain the diagram. 

Show the relation of the President to members of his 
cabinet, who are men of his personal choice. It would 
increase the interest if a teacher could show pictures of 
these men and mention their names. 



XIX. THE STATES AND THE NATION 

Forty-six States now form the Federal Union — the 
United States of America. The Constitution guar- 
antees to every State a republican form of govern- 
ment and the Federal authorities enforce the provi- 
sions of the Constitution and supervise the general 
affairs of the commonwealth. Thus no State can 
enter into agreement with another State or make a 




REPUBLICAN FORM OF GOVERNMENT 
QUAKANTLED 



LESSONS IN GOVERNMENT 191 

treaty with a foreign power. No State can engage 
in war save in case of actual invasion and cannot keep 
a military or naval force without consent of Congress. 
No State can grant titles of nobility, coin money or 
make anything but the gold and silver coin of the 
United States a legal tender. It cannot pass laws 
impairing the obligations of contracts. These limi- 
tations are imposed by Congress and the Constitution 
of the United States. 

Congress also establishes a uniform rule of naturali- 
zation and uniform bankruptcy laws. Congress ex- 
ercises direct control over the District of Columbia 
and over all territory not yet organized into States 
and admitted to the Union; also over all forts, arse- 
nals, dockyards and other buildings owned by it in 
the several States and over the various national reser- 
vations in different parts of the country. Congress 
has the right to impose duties and excises but these 
must be uniform throughout the country and no com- 
mercial preference can be shown to any State. The 
United States guarantees absolute free trade between 
the States. 

Congress has charge of the national census, which 
must be taken every ten years. Congress cannot 
grant a title of nobility. The acts and records of 
each State must be given full faith and credit, as also 
must the judicial proceedings of each State. Crimi- 
nals fleeing from one State to another can be ex- 
tradited. 

In any legal matter where Federal law is involved 
the case is tried in the United States courts. 
Disputes between two States or between citizens of 



192 READER FOR COMING AMERICANS 

different States are tried in these courts ; also cases 
affecting representatives of foreign governments, acts 
committed on the high seas and all bankruptcy, copy- 
right and postal matters, etc. 

The United States Supreme Court is composed of 
a chief justice and eight associates and is the highest 
judicial tribunal in the country. Its annual sessions 
are held in Washington. The country is divided into 
nine judicial circuits, each including several different 
States. These circuits are subdivided into districts, 
each State embracing from one to four of these. One 
of the Supreme Court justices is assigned to each 
circuit and there are in each from two to four circuit 
judges. Also each district has its judge, its district 
attorney and its United States marshal. 

There is also a Court of Claims, with its special 
judges, which sits in Washington and has jurisdiction 
in a certain class of cases. 

Questions 

1. What does the Federal government guarantee 
to each State? 

2. What are some of the limitations imposed upon 
the State by the National government? 

3. Name some things controlled by Congress. 

4. How are the territories governed? 

5. What duties and excises are imposed by the 
United States government ? 

6. Can a State impose duties and excises? 

7. What power guarantees faith in the acts and 
records of the various States? 

8. If a State has a case against a sister State where 
is it tried? 

9- Name the Federal courts. 



LESSONS IN GOVERNMENT 



193 



10. Into how many judicial circuits is the United 
States divided? How many judicial districts are there? 

11. What two United States officers besides the judge 
has each district? 

12. Where are the sessions of the Supreme Court 
held? 




DELATIONS 

OF 

LOCAL ' STATE **» FEDERAL 
qO\/E£NMENT5 



194 READER FOR COMING AMERICANS 

Hints to Teachers 

Show the necessity of a coordinating power in order to 
harmonize the interests of the several States of the 
Union. 

On the map point out the District of Columbia and the 
territories where the Federal government has a more 
direct relation to the citizens than in the States. 

Mention the work of the Interstate Commerce Com- 
mission as showing the efficiency of the Federal govern- 
ment in affairs governing the entire country. 

Show a picture of United States Supreme Court in 
session. 



XX. NATURALIZATION 

Naturalization is the process by which a foreign- 
born person may become a citizen of the United 
States. Application may be made either in a United 
States or a State court. The following are the 
United States laws relating to this subject: 

An alien applying for naturalization must be at 
least eighteen years old. He must reside in the 
country for five years before he can become a citizen. 
Two years before he can be admitted to citizenship, 
he must declare under oath before a court of record 
that he intends to become a citizen of the United 
States (commonly called taking out one's first 
papers). No less than two or more than seven years 
later he must affirm that it is his intention to become 
a citizen and reside permanently in the United States. 
He must satisfy the court by the testimony of two 
witnesses or by a certificate of landing that he has 
resided continuously in the country for five years. 



LESSONS IN GOVERNMENT 195 

He must declare on oath that he will support the 
Constitution of the United States and that he abso- 
lutely and entirely renounces all foreign allegiance. 
A knowledge of the English language is necessary, 
for the questions put by the court are in English and 
the applicant must answer in that language. A good 
moral character is also essential. 

Men who do not believe in organized government or 
who are members of organizations waging war on 
the officers of government cannot become citizens ; 
neither those who believe in polygamy. 

The privilege of citizenship can be conferred by the 
United States ; the right to vote is given by the State 
and is regulated by State law. In some States per- 
sons can vote six months after declaring their inten- 
tion of becoming citizens. In a few States women 
can vote. 

The right to vote is a right to participate in the 
government of the country. It is the highest privi- 
lege which can be conferred upon aliens and at 
present about 6,000,000 foreign-born persons are 
enjoying the full right of citizenship in the United 
States. An alien upon becoming a naturalized citi- 
zen possesses all the rights of a native-born citizen 
except that of holding the office of President or Vice- 
President of the United States. A minor child of an 
alien if dwelling within the United States at the time 
of the naturalization of his father becomes a citizen ; 
so also does a wife. 

Questions 

1. What is the process called by which an alien may 
become a citizen? 



196 READER FOR COMING AMERICANS 

2. How old must an applicant be? 
S. Must he make application to a State or to a 
United States court? 

4. How do we commonly speak of a man's declaring 
his intention of becoming a citizen? 

5. How many years of continuous residence are 
required in order to become a citizen? 

6. Must a man understand the English language 
before becoming a citizen? Why? 

7. What classes of Europeans are debarred from 
becoming citizens of this country? 

8. Has a man the right to vote simply because he 
is a citizen of the United States? 

9. Do any States permit aliens to vote? 

10. What about the wife and children of a natur- 
alized citizen? 

11. Can women vote? 

Hints to Teachers 

Procure copies of the first and second naturalization 
papers and explain them to the class. 

Tell about foreign-born men who became noted Ameri- 
can citizens — statesmen, jurists, scientists, clergymen, 
business men, soldiers, writers. 

Explain how a man cannot hold allegiance to two 
countries at the same time. 

Show the nature of an oath and the legal and moral 
effects of perjury. 



LEAp'IO 













READER 

for 

Coming Americans 











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